PIA to resume flight operation from Islamabad to London from March 29 

Finally, after a gap of six years, the Pakistan International Airline (PIA) is going to start operating flights from Islamabad to London, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Making a big announcement, the PIA said on Tuesday that from March 29, it would operate four flights from Islamabad to London every week.

These flights will be operated from London’s Heathrow Airport’s terminal-4.

In a statement, the PIA spokesperson said the national flag carrier was increasing its flights to the United Kingdom.

London is the airline’s first international and most attractive destination.

The airline is already operating three flights from Islamabad to Manchester every week.

In June 2020, the European Union Air Safety Agency had barred the PIA from operating in EU countries over safety concerns after a flight from Lahore to Karachi crashed near Jinnah International Airport, killing around 100 passengers.

The ban on flights followed the then-aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan’s statement on the floor of parliament in which he termed pilots’ licences “dubious”.

The European agency lifted the ban after more than four years on Nov 28, 2024.

In July 2025, the UK removed Pakistan from its Air Safety List, allowing Pakistani airlines to apply to operate flights in Britain.

In September, PIA received the go-ahead signal to resume direct flights to the UK after a gap of nearly five years.

Subsequently, the airline resumed flights to the UK, with flight operations to Manchester resuming in the first phase.

At the time, the airline had said it planned to extend operations to Birmingham and London as well.

Reporter: Tayyab Saif