Dubai - The move is expected to allow the arrival of 2,500 to 3,000 passengers daily.
Pakistan has increased the capacity of inbound international flights to 50 per cent from July 15 to help repatriate overseas Pakistanis ahead of Eid Al Adha next week.
The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) gave the go-ahead to national and foreign airlines to increase their Pakistan-bound flight operations as the pandemic situation improved globally following the rapid roll-out of the vaccination drive.
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“In view of the recent improvement in Covid-19 situation in various parts of the world, the Government of Pakistan has increased the international flight operations up to 50 per cent. This increase in flight schedule will be implemented with effect from July 15,” according to a Notice to Airmen (Notam) by Pakistan's CAA late Tuesday.
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The CAA had reduced the Pakistan-bound international flights to 20 per cent on May 2 due to the rise in Covid-19 cases.
"In view of a substantial drop in daily cases of Covid-19 in the world, NCOC has allowed the Civil Aviation Authority to increase the number of international flight operations up to 50 per cent with effect from July 15," an airline official told Khaleej Times.
The increase in capacity to Pakistan-bound international flights will help non-resident Pakistanis residing in the Gulf countries to book their flights to celebrate Eid with their families in the country.
More than five million overseas Pakistanis reside in GCC countries for doing jobs in private and public sectors besides running small-scale business ventures.
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"All Pakistan airports have been directed to get ready to deal with the higher number of passengers ahead of Eid next week. We expect that the move will allow the arrival of 2,500 to 3,000 passengers daily," according to a CAA official.
Aviation sources said the increase in capacity of Pakistan-bound flights is a positive development and it will help resume flight operations from Pakistan to the UAE after Eid holidays.
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"It is likely that flight operations from Pakistan to the UAE will resume by July-end and the airlines may start resume ticket booking after July 21," sources said.
-- muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com
Muzaffar Rizvi is an accomplished financial journalist with more than 25 years of experience in the UAE and Pakistan. He has good writing skills, strong grip on production and an excellent news sense.