Smoke rises above the city skyline in Riyadh, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. Photo: Reuters
LAHORE:
Flight operations across Pakistan continue to face severe disruption due to the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States-Israel. Thousands of passengers are cancelling travel plans and airlines are suffering heavy financial losses, aviation sources said.
More than 90 flights were cancelled on Monday from airports across the country, including Allama Iqbal International Airport, amid continuing uncertainty in the region.
According to airport sources, over 110,000 passengers travelling from Pakistan to countries including the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran, Iraq and Azerbaijan have sought ticket refunds due to the flight suspension.
During the past 17 days alone, around 1,955 flights from Pakistan’s airports – including Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Multan, Faisalabad, Sialkot, Peshawar, and Quetta – have been cancelled, causing losses worth billions of rupees to domestic and international airlines. Travel agents have also suffered losses amounting to millions of rupees.
Data shared with Express News by airlines and travel agencies indicate that the IranUS conflict has pushed the aviation industry to the brink of crisis, with more than 55,000 flights cancelled worldwide.
In a related incident, an Emirates flight (EK-623) from Lahore to Dubai was forced to return midway due to security concerns. The aircraft, carrying over 100 passengers, landed safely at Lahore airport.
According to travel industry representatives, the crisis has severely affected travel businesses.
Khawaja Ayub Naseem, leader of the Travel Agents Association, said travel agents typically earn between Rs1,000 and Rs3,000 in service charges on each international ticket. However, the ongoing wave of ticket refunds has wiped out earnings as new bookings have almost stopped.
He added that this period normally sees a surge in travel, with thousands of Pakistani expatriates returning home to celebrate Eidul Fitr with their families and Umrah pilgrims travelling to Makkah, but the flight suspension has disrupted those plans.
Airport authorities said flights between Pakistan and several Middle Eastern destinations including Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran, Iraq, and Azerbaijan remain suspended, with only limited flights operating.
However, flight operations continue for destinations including Saudi Arabia, Muscat, Europe, Canada, Malaysia, Thailand, and Sri Lanka, airport sources added.
