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No PIA flights to Dubai despite end of stir

According to Pakistan media reports, the employees promised to resume duties yesterday evening. However, travel plans of thousands of passengers to Dubai went awry as they remained stranded for the second consecutive day.

A PIA official told Khaleej Times from Pakistan: “The strike has been called off but at least three flights to Dubai remain cancelled. Some international routes, including Manchester, have been adjusted but Dubai-bound passengers can only be adjusted on different flights only by today.”

Two flights from Karachi and one from Islamabad to Dubai remained cancelled yesterday. However, two flights from Dubai to Karachi were still scheduled to leave late yesterday evening.

On Friday, engineers and technicians of Pakistan’s national carrier PIA went on sick leave, en masse, causing major disruption in air traffic, leaving thousands of domestic and international passengers stranded. Until Friday, at least 45 domestic and five international flights, including five to Dubai, had been cancelled.

An official from PIA’s Dubai office said there were five daily flights to different destinations in Pakistan from Dubai. “We are advising passengers to cooperate with us as they will be adjusted on different flights in the coming days,” he said.

Meanwhile, agitated and stranded passengers said that the PIA officials in Dubai were not giving clear answers to their queries and there was also no talk of any refunds in case they wanted to change the airline.

“I have been trying to contact officials since the day of the strike, but I am being told that we will be adjusted on some flights later,” said Mohammed Azeem, who has been waiting at Dubai Airport for a flight to Karachi since Friday.

“I wanted a refund of my ticket so that I could take Airblue, but no PIA official is giving any straight answer,” he said.

Many passengers bought tickets of other airlines from Dubai Airport, including Airblue and Emirates Airlines. “I have no choice because I have to reach Karachi urgently,” said Imtiaz Khan, who said he was lucky to get a ticket on an Emirates flight.

Dubai residents, who had travelled over the weekend to Karachi, remained stranded till yesterday. “My wife had gone to Karachi to attend some urgent work. She was supposed to return yesterday evening as she has to resume her duties today, but she is still unable to catch any flight as there are no seats,” said Mohammed Naeem.

• UAE