PIA’s first flight for Chicago carrying 272 passengers starting from Karachi via Allama Iqbal Airport, Lahore left in the early hours of Wednesday Morning. The flight PK 793 will stop at Barcelona and will reach Chicago O’ Hare International Airport by 1650 hours (US Time).
Deputy Managing Director PIA, Mr. Salim Sayani gave a ceremonial sent off both at Karachi and Lahore airports to the travelling passengers of Boeing 777.
Other Senior Airline Officials at Karachi and Lahore airports also present at the occasion to greet the passengers included Director Corporate Planning PIA, Mr. Shanawaz Rehman, General Manager Passenger Handling Services, Mr. Aijaz Mazhar and General Manager Revenue Management, Mr. Rashid Aziz at Jinnah International Airport Karachi and PIA District Manager Lahore, Mr. Mansoor A Mela, Station Manager Mr. Saeed Khan and other officials at Allama Iqbal Airport, Lahore.
Deputy Managing Director PIA, Mr. Salim Sayani while sharing his views on the commencement of PIA’s flight operation to Chicago said that the new destination is a major expansion for PIA, as it is the only airline and also the first one to operate direct flights between Barcelona and Chicago”.
He said that the Chicago flight operation meets the long standing demand of travelers, business and expatriate community. Pakistani, American and Spanish tourists and businessmen are expected to avail PIA flights at very competitive fares with convenient timings. The National Carrier is expanding its operations to new destinations while increasing the frequency of its existing flights as well, he added.
PIA now operates 5 weekly flights to USA from Pakistan. It is worth mentioning here that PIA first started its flight service for US, between Karachi and New York in 1961, using Boeing 707s. Currently the airline has three weekly flights to New York every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
National Carrier will operate two weekly flights from Pakistan to Chicago via Barcelona, every Wednesday for the sector Karachi-Lahore-Barcelona-Chicago and every Saturday for the sector Islamabad – Karachi-Barcelona-Chicago.
