Karachi airport still facing flight delays amid poor weather

KARACHI: Flight operations at Jinnah International Airport were severely affected on Wednesday as poor weather conditions caused delays and cancellations of several domestic and international flights, ARY News reported.

According to Jinnah airport sources, at least 12 flights were delayed. An Iraqi Airways flight to Najaf departed an hour late at 6:00 am, while an Airblue flight to Jeddah (PK-170) took off nearly seven hours behind schedule at 10:00 am.

Other international flights also faced disruption: Qatar Airways flight 605 to Doha, Flydubai flight 332 to Dubai, and Etihad Airways flight 297 to Abu Dhabi were each delayed by about an hour.

Domestic operations were also hit. PIA flight 455 from Karachi to Skardu was delayed by one hour, while Serene Air’s flight 520 to Lahore left 30 minutes late. PIA’s flight 300 to Islamabad departed 20 minutes behind schedule.

Meanwhile, AirSial’s flight 121 to Islamabad, scheduled for 7:00 am, had not departed by the time of reporting, and PIA’s flight 302 to Lahore, scheduled for 8:00 am, was also still awaiting departure. In addition, PIA’s flight 503 to Gwadar was cancelled.

A Saudi Airlines flight to Jeddah (701) eventually departed at 10:10 am, about an hour later than scheduled.

Also Read: Karachi still facing power outages after two days of rain

Earlier, following two days of heavy rainfall, the city continues to face a severe electricity crisis as 98 feeders of K-Electric remain non-functional, leaving large areas without power.

According to officials, underground cables and substations were inundated with rainwater, disrupting electricity supply across several neighbourhoods.

Power outages have been reported from different parts of Karachi including Surjani Town, Yousuf Goth, Moinabad, Scheme 33, and Baldia. Areas such as Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Bin Qasim, Gulshan-e-Hadeed, Manghopir, and Razzaqabad also remain without power.

Residents of Ramswami, the Old City Area, Urdu Bazaar, and M.A. Jinnah Road have been facing outages for more than 48 hours.

The prolonged suspension of electricity has also disrupted the supply of water in many households, compounding the difficulties faced by citizens.