INTERNATIONAL JANUARY 2021 Fly with pride, Fly with AirSial JANUARY 2021 - 3 I n t e r n a t i o n a l a v i a t i o n f New By Abdul Sattar Azad Phone 34615924 Fax 34615924 Printed by Sardar Sons 4 - JANUARY 2021 Vol 28 JANUARY 2021 No.04 New player's entry into aviation industry amid pandemic termed bold 06 AirSial, Pakistan's newest airline, takes off domestically 07 PIA to operate cargo flights to Saudi Arabia 08 06 Pakistan puts curbs on passengers from UK 10 Serene Air allowed to operate flights to Saudi Arabia, UAE 11 Gerry's dnata has formed a multiyear partnership with Virgin Atlantic Airways 11 PIA getting rid of four aircraft due to expensive lease 12 CAA`s bifurcation an international aviation requirement: minister 14 Top 20 safest airlines named 15 Deaths in air crashes rose last year despite decline in number of flights 17 Sparks fly in PIA 18 EU ban won`t be lifted before CAA audit, PIA told 19 Air force inducts 14 locally-built JF- 21 EgyptAir and Gulf Air expand codeshare agreement 23 SIAL provides best facilities to the airlines and passengers 25 07 AirSial celebrates 1st flight from Sialkot to Karachi 27 Human Rights: 'Lebensraum of Cashmere' 29 EU states ban flights as Britain says new virus strain is`out of control` 32 New year brings final separation between Britain and EU 34 Textile exports rise 5pc 36 Pakistan seeks data sharing pact with UAE to curb under invoicing 38 Sarghoda's citrus claim to fame 39 Corals in Astola Island bristle with marine life 41 Sindh Culture Day celebrated in Karachi, major towns of province 42 Special permits issued to Qatari royal for houbara hunting 45 An Exciting Excursion 49 21 JANUARY 2021 - 5 New player's entry into aviation industry amid pandemic termed bold hile the country's three operational airlines have Wbeen taking cost-cutting measures against the backdrop of a crisis that the global aviation industry has been facing since the outbreak of coronavirus, the decision of AirSial to enter an already saturated market is being seen as a bold move that may give a tough time to competitors but will benefit the people. The market situation can be gauged from a recent report of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) predicting that airline revenues this year will plunge by 60 per cent as a result of the coronavirus pandemic that “threatens the survival of the air transport industry”. Pakistan's commercial aviation sector is no different from the rest of the AirSial Airbus A320 world as its airlines are taking drastic Domestic market Fleet size measures, including job cuts, for their At present, only three of the six The combined fleet size of Pakistan's survival. airlines PIA, Airblue and Serene Air are four airlines is less than 50 aircraft, Operation of three airlines operational as CAA's 'certified operators'. whereas Emirates, the flag carrier of the suspended in recent years The PIA and Airblue operate commercial UAE, possesses a fleet of 255 passenger RPT licences flights on both domestic and international aircraft alone and Air India, the flag carrier Over the years, the Civil Aviation routes, but the Serene Air is yet to start its of our eastern neighbour, operates 172 Authority had granted Regular Public international operation. aircraft. Transport (RPT) licences to many The fourth one, AirSial, has entered The PIA spokesman said the airline airlines. Some of the airlines went out of the domestic market after it met the had a fleet of 30 aircraft including 12 business like Aero Asia. Currently six requirement of having minimum three Boeing 777s, 11 Airbus A-320s and seven airlines the Pakistan International aircraft, as its chairman Fazal Jilani is ATRs. Airblue has a fleet of 10 aircraft, all Airlines (PIA), Airblue, Shaheen Air reported to have announced selling tickets Airbus A320 and A321, while Serene Air International (SAI), Bhoja Air, Air Indus after the formal inauguration by the prime has five aircraft including four Boeing and Serene Air possess RPT licences but minister. 737-800 and one Airbus A330-200. only three of them are operational as While the entry of a new player will In the financial year 2018-19, a total CAA's certified operators. definitely provide intending passengers of 3,002,554 passengers in the country Issued by the CAA director general better fares and service, it will slash the used Airblue, PIA, Serene Air and SAI with the federal government approval for revenue of the other airlines because of (whose operations were suspended by the carriage of passengers and cargo services, increased competition and capacity. Yet CAA in August 2018 for failing to pay over RPT licence is only a permission to the old players did not shy from extending Rs1.5 billion arrears). develop an organisation on ground. It is good wishes for the new entrant. PIA got the lion's share as 1,795,877 not considered a permission to operate an “We welcome development of the passengers travelled through the national aircraft for which an airline must obtain an local aviation industry and wish AirSial all flag carrier, followed by Serene Air Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the the best,” PIA spokesman Abdullah H. (875,536), Airblue (314,485) and SAI CAA. The CAA puts certain conditions Khan said while talking to media. (16,656). A total of 18,470 PIA flights took that an airline needs to meet before “Competition is healthy as it improves off and landed on various country's starting its flight operations. A fleet of products and services for the consumers,” airports during 2018-19 followed by minimum three aircraft is the first such he said. Serene Air's 5,686 flight take-off and requirement for initiating passenger Similar views were shared by Airblue landings, Airblue's 1,991 and SAI's 155. flights while one aircraft is needed for that sees AirSial's commencing Aviation experts have been urging the cargo operations. For getting an AOC, a government to rationalise heavy taxes on company must register its fleet in commercial flight operation as a 'bold step'. air tickets in order to make air travel Pakistan. affordable for more people. And The CAA had earlier suspended the “We welcome the new entrant in the restrictions imposed in the wake of operations of Bhoja Air and Air Indus in market and wish them well. The aviation coronavirus pandemic have already 2012 and 2015, respectively, while SAI's industry across the world and especially impacted the fragile industry badly. operations were suspended in 2018. Air Pakistan is passing through a time never As IATA director general Alexandre Indus, which lost two aircraft in the 2014 really seen before. To enter the industry is de Juniac had recently said that airlines terrorist attack on Karachi airport that led a bold step indeed,” said Raheel Ahmed, “will have to continue to draw on their to suspension of its operations in 2015, Airblue's deputy managing director. reserves until at least the fourth quarter of says on its website it is planning to import “Competition in any field is good for the 2021”, there are slim chances that the local three latest models ATR 72-600 to restart consumers. It improves the overall aviation industry flourish in the short term its operation shortly. standard of service.” without government patronage. 6 - JANUARY 2021 AirSial, Pakistan's newest airline, takes off domestically routes with three A320s: Karachi to Islamabad; Lahore; Peshawar; and Sialkot. The first three routes are Pakistan's top-three based on pre-coronavirus 2019 seat capacity, OAG data shows. Sialkot, however, was thin, with fewer than 48,000 two-way seats with one carrier: Pakistan International. Sialkot is the headquarters for AirSial. From Karachi, Quetta, Faisalabad, Multan, Sukkur, and Rahim Yar Khan all had more seats than Sialkot. Karachi Quetta had four times as many and was the This decline was the result of a myriad of things, including the country's struggling economic performance, PIA's ongoing major problems, and the end of Shaheen Air in late 2018. Source: OAG Schedules Analyser. AirSial's flights will be almost the joint-highest in February. ir Sial on Friday 25 Dec. Chamber of Commerce and Industry who Currently, AirSial is operating only started its Karachi-Islamabad launched the project after the success of two routes: Karachi to Islamabad and Aflights operation using their earlier initiative, the Sialkot Lahore. Each has a 14-weekly offering. Airbus A320-200. International Airport Ltd. From the week beginning 1 February, Prime Minister Imran Khan had The airline management has also set however, these will rise to 21-weekly inaugurated Air Sial on Dec 9 in Sialkot, up its booking and facilitation office at apiece. In this period, Peshawar and the third private airline of Pakistan, which Islamabad International Airport as it was Sialkot will start with a four- and three- made operational by the airline staff. had been launched and operated by weekly service respectively. Sialkot's business community, initially Initially, the airline will operate two with three Airbus A320-200s. from Karachi and Lahore flights and two Although things may change, AirSial is scheduled to have 49 weekly flights each The first flight of Air Sial with 185 between Karachi and Islamabad which the way in February. It'll have the second- passengers on board departed from Jinnah management said would be increased to International Airport on Friday 25 Dec. three flights. highest volume of flights and have just morning on domestic route and touched They claimed that the airline will two fewer than market leader, PIA.