PIA has resumed its passenger flights on the Beijing-Islamabad route after a seven-month hiatus. The flight (PK-855) took off from Beijing on Sunday and is scheduled to arrive in Islamabad later in the day.
The national-flag carrier resumed its commercial passenger flights on Islamabad-Xian and Beijing-Islamabad sections last month, but the aircraft had to return to Islamabad from Xian, as the Beijing Capital Airport was closed to international flights for Covid-19 prevention, official sources said.
On Saturday, the PK-854 arrived in Xian from Islamabad. After no cases of Covid-19 were found, the PIA flight then landed in Beijing from Xian on Sunday. The PK-855 then returned to Islamabad from Beijing.
It is important to note that the PIA operated its last flight between Beijing and Islamabad on December 19, 2021.PIA is also currently running direct weekly passenger flights between Islamabad and Chengdu, the capital city of China’s Sichuan province, every Wednesday.
PIA has announced that Chengdu is its new destination in China, in addition to Xian and Beijing. This is a significant development, as it will allow PIA to operate flights to Chinese cities from Pakistan.
The Beijing-Islamabad flight will provide a more convenient means of transport for passengers, especially those living in the Chinese capital, including officials, traders and students.
The flight will also help to transport Chinese personnel working on different projects being completed under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) more easily.
The Pakistani passengers who departed for Islamabad from Beijing Capital Airport said that PIA was expanding its flight network for China, providing Pakistani and Chinese travelers with more options to directly reach different cities between China and Pakistan.
