PIA suspends flight to Turkiye over inventory issues

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Wednesday temporarily suspended its flight operations to Turkiye, ARY News reported citing sources.

According to sources, the flight operation will remain suspended till October 13 due to  issues related to inventory and airport slots.

Sources said that four flights operate weekly from Islamabad and Lahore to Turkiye.

In a separate development earlier today, Pakistan International Airlines temporarily halted all flights using Iranian airspace after Iran’s missile attacks on Israel, as per official orders.

The airline’s spokesperson confirmed that flight plans are being rescheduled, and Iran’s airspace will not be utilized until the situation stabilizes.

PIA uses two air corridors through Iran: the Northern Corridor for routes to Canada and Turkey, and the Southern Corridor for flights to the UAE, Bahrain, Doha, and Saudi Arabia.

In response to the escalating conflict, Israel and Jordan have also closed their airspace to civilian flights.

Several international airlines have suspended flights to Israel and Lebanon amid growing concerns over the war.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued new directives to Pakistan Air Traffic Control (ATC) to tighten surveillance of its airspace.

READ: Iran launches missiles at Israel, IDF says

According to sources, ATC has been instructed to closely monitor all flights entering Pakistan from Iran, Afghanistan airspaces.

The move comes as Pakistan takes steps to safeguard its airspace and maintain regional security during ongoing tensions between Iran and Israel.