Damaged runway: Peshawar airport closure disrupts international, domestic flights

A ditch was detected when an Airblue flight was preparing for take-off.

PESHAWAR/ KARACHI:

Bacha Khan International Airport was temporarily shut for air traffic on Saturday after a ditch was discovered along a portion of the runway. The schedule of up to four international flights and one domestic flight was disrupted as a result.

According to airport officials, the ditch was detected when an Airblue flight was preparing for take-off. The runway was then closed and repair work was initiated, an official said.

“Since the airport is being used by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Pakistan Air Force (PAF) jointly, a meeting of the base commander and airport authorities is under way,” the official said.

The airport closure disrupted the schedule of five flights, including four international flights.

CAA spokesperson Abid Qaimkhani told The Express Tribune that all inbound and outbound air traffic was temporarily suspended due to the ditch.

“Runway maintenance work is under way but as for now no specific time for resuming flight operations can be stated,” said Qaimkhani.

The fault disrupted operations of at least two flights of Pakistan International Airlines were delayed, said PIA spokesperson Muhammad Mashhood Tajwar. PIA flight PK-755 bound for Riyadh from Lahore via Peshawar at 6:50pm was delayed. Another Peshawar-bound flight from Karachi, PK-350, was also delayed.

Shaheen Air International’s Muscat-bound flight from Peshawar, NL-771, was also cancelled.

Tajwar, however, clarified that the national flag carrier was waiting for clearance and information provided by CAA and airport authorities.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2013.