Pakistan International Airlines

[Aviador]

I think the PIA Christmas Day flight departed an hour late. I hope the staff that were working managed to get some sort of Christmas when they eventually got home after the flight.

 

[lbaspotter]

I think the PIA Christmas Day flight departed an hour late. I hope the staff that were working managed to get some sort of Christmas when they eventually got home after the flight.

I guess the staff will have had to wait around until 21:00 for the KLM arrival from Amsterdam on Christmas day. With the dealy to the PIA it might have made that wait feel shorter.

 

[lbaspotter]

Hi

Dose anyone know what the average pax load is for PIA out of LBA at the moment?

As things stand it dose'nt look good for Glasgow. As they have announced that they are dropping there 2x weekly A310-300 Lahore-Glasgow service at the end off January due to what the airline reports as follows

"We've been flying with a 70% capacity load. We've made losses of £600m rupees, which is equivalent to about £43m and we can't continue like this any more."

I have seen reports in the pas that the airlines LBA-Islamabad service dose quite will on a 2x weekly basis. I'm Just intrested to know how well compared to the Glasgow figure's...

 

[Aviador]

When the flight operated twice weekly before they upt it to three times weekly it was operating at around 98% load factor if I remember correctly. When they added the third weekly flight this dropped to around 70% or there abouts so this would tie in with what's happened at Glasgow.

 

[lbaspotter]

When the flight operated twice weekly before they upt it to three times weekly it was operating at around 98% load factor if I remember correctly. When they added the third weekly flight this dropped to around 70% or there abouts so this would tie in with what's happened at Glasgow.

Well if thats the case Aviador, With LBA service dropping back from 3 to 2 weekly I do hope them passenger firgures are as high now as there where the first time around at 2 weekly. A 90% to 98% average load is really good in my book and may get a little better due to GLA been dropped.

By way the Glasgow service only ever operated 2x weekly. It never increased to 3 weekly.

 

[Aviador]

A 90% to 98% average load is really good in my book and may get a little better due to GLA been dropped.

Bare in mind the GLA service that is being pulled is the Lahore not the Islamabad so it's shouldn't make any difference to passenger loads here at LBA.

 

[lbaspotter]

A 90% to 98% average load is really good in my book and may get a little better due to GLA been dropped.

Bare in mind the GLA service that is being pulled is the Lahore not the Islamabad so it's shouldn't make any difference to passenger loads here at LBA.

But also remember the GLA-Lahore route was the only direct service to Pakistan from North off the Boarder. Scottish pax will now have to either use a non direct service to Pakistan using Emirates services to Dubai from NCL, GLA or MAN or choose to use a direct non-stop PIA service from LBA or MAN.

 

[Aviador]

Fair point. I don't know which is the easiest way of doing it. The connection via Dubai or the internal connection from ISB.

 

[White Heather]

When we had a Lahore service using Swedair, the passenger loads were, as I understand it, very high indeed - so much so that after a short period of time, the linking flight across to Stockholm was dropped and the Swedair 767 flew right through to LBA. It would be interesting to see whether or not PIA consider Lahore from here, especially now they are dropping it from GLA, and if they did, how it would do alongside Islamabad.

 

[lbaspotter]

hI Heather

I was thinking along the same lines as you. I wondered if a Lahore service would work out of Leeds/Bradford. At the moment I hear pax loads are in the 95% sometimes + on the current 2x weekly Islamabad service.

So say PIA went back to operating 3 times weekly and pax figures did fall back down again to say something like between 70%-75% Loads, Why not instead of operating a direct service to Lahore how about running 1 or 2 of the 3 weekly Islamabad services via Lahore or maybe extended the service starting and finishing in Lahore.

This would be less off a risk for the airline to take and would surely fill up the extra 20%-25% seats that would be required to fill the Pakistani service 3 times weekly on an Airbus A310. Also by doing this they see if there is demand for from them to run a service to Lahore from Leeds/Bradford in the future without distrupting its the exsisiting well used Islamabad service

 

[jason1-11]

Lahore got everything going for it ex Leeds for the following reasons:

1 Has been done in the past successfully
2 Has an airline that has the right equipment and slots when the Glasgow service ends
3 Is already used to operating from Leeds

What's stopping you?

 

[lbaspotter]

Well it looks like things have just took a big twist regarding PIA operations

If you look up the post I’ve just posted in the PIA worldwide Airline forum on here you will see that PIA has just agreed to start a massive hub operation in Istanbul as they have announced that it will start to codeshare with Turkish Airlines.

Take a read then come back here and then let’s start to speculate as Whats going to happen with PIA at LBA from March onwards.

 

[backtrack]

lbaspotter,

read your article, still unsure on how it will effect lba operations, i cant see anything. they claim to expand new routes and increase frequencies in the east, yet we are west from Pakistan.

UK services still to be operated by PIA aircraft also...

 

[Aviador]

The only thing I can see working out of this is if Turkish Airlines were to operate LBA - IST with onward connections to Lahore and Karachi etc but the airline already operates into MAN so it's unlikely they will add flights to LBA as well, but you never know.

 

[backtrack]

Possible...Yes, but what size aircraft have TK got that would suit an LBA - IST connection to LHE or KHI?

 

[Aviador]

I think they operate Boeing 737-800's (I can't quite make it out by this picture)

[rimg]http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k145/airportsuk/Man-025.png[/rimg]
Photo: Forums4airports Library Photo. (formally known as uk-airport-forum)

 

[pilot_737]

Yes that is a 737-800 aviador.
TK operate 320s,321s,330s,340s,737-7/800s,777s - all which could op to LBA!

 

[Moo2009]

Long shot put with pia doing what they say in the article with turkish airlines will this release a 777 to operate Leeds to Islamabad

 

[backtrack]

Yes that is a 737-800 aviador.
TK operate 320s,321s,330s,340s,737-7/800s,777s - all which could op to LBA!

A340? pilot_ben...

 

[White Heather]

I would be surprised if PIA did anything to bring an end to the direct services from LBA, or other airports they use. Passengers generally do not like having to change en route, and will usually opt for a flight that doesn't require one if possible. PIA would be likely to lose passengers to other airlines operating to Pakistan should they go down that route. What would be good though is that Islamabad continues direct, hopefully with larger equipment eventually, and that Turkish could operate LBA to Instanbul with onward connections to the likes of Lahore and other Pakistani cities. That would be a good way of finding out if the demand is there for direct routes in the future.