Pakistan-UAE flights: PIA starts operations to, from Ras Al Khaimah

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has increased flights to the UAE, connecting Ras Al Khaimah to the South Asian country’s four major cities.

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The national carrier started operating flights from Islamabad, Peshawar, Lahore and Karachi to the northern emirate from August 28.

This will provide a major relief to Pakistanis stranded in their home country to resume their jobs and join their families. Following months of passenger flight suspensions, UAE authorities announced, earlier this month, that passengers from Pakistan — among six restricted countries — could return to the Emirates, provided they meet certain criteria.

PIA has been increasing operational capacity since the UAE eased entry restrictions for residents stranded in Pakistan. The pre-entry conditions include prior approval from the Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship, negative PCR test with a validity of 48 hours, and a rapid PCR test six hours prior to the departure of the flight.

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— PIA (@Official_PIA) August 27, 2021

PIA is already operating flights from all major Pakistani cities to different emirates of the UAE, including Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.

Recently, all the airlines, in cooperation with local laboratories, set up facilities within the airport premises across Pakistan to conduct rapid PCR tests in line with the UAE’s instructions to authorities.

“We saw a good opportunity in Ras Al Khaimah because there is plenty of demand for air travel from Pakistan right now. We’re deploying large aircraft Boeing 777 to meet the demand. We have also increased Sharjah capacity from Islamabad, Peshawar, Lahore, Karachi and Sialkot,” said Shahid Mughal, regional manager for the UAE at PIA.

waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com