British Airways announces return to Pakistan after a decade

British Airways will resume flights to Pakistan next summer, the carrier announced , in a major vote of confidence from a Western airline a decade after suspending operations due to security fears.

The British carrier, which halted services in 2008 after the deadly Marriott Hotel bombing in Islamabad, will return in June 2019 with three weekly flights from London’s Heathrow airport to the Pakistani capital, airline officials said.

BA had six weekly flights to the Pakistani capital before the Marriott attack, which killed more than 50 people and triggered a major drawdown by embassies and international agencies over safety concerns.

The carrier’s announcement was “a reflection of the great improvements in the security situation in Pakistan” in the years since, said British High Commissioner to Pakistan Thomas Drew.

“We only fly somewhere when we know it’s safe to do so,” Robert Williams, BA’s head of sales for Asia said in Islamabad.

Tickets starting at US$ 630 were due to go on sale from Tuesday.

BA said the route – which will be serviced by the Boeing 787 Dreamliner – is among four direct long-haul flights being introduced in 2019, along with Pittsburgh and Charleston in the US, and Osaka in Japan.

The announcement caused a stir on Twitter, where it was greeted with jubilation by many Pakistanis.

The army tweeted its gratitude to the airline using the hashtag # PeacefulPakistan, while the government’s official account proclaimed the country a “new investment destination of Asia”.

Britain is home to more than a million residents of Pakistani origin, making it the largest Pakistani diaspora community in Europe.

The struggling Pakistan International Airlines is currently the only carrier with direct flights between the two countries.

Since the Marriott attack the country has been largely dependent on Middle Eastern airlines such as Emirates and Etihad, with most international flights routed through the Gulf, making travel expensive and cumbersome for many passengers. — AFP