Rejecting speculation: ‘Operations at BKIA will not end but increase’

CAA says Rs300 million allocated to expand airport.

PESHAWAR: Frequent flyers concerned over reports that Bacha Khan International Airport (BKIA) was being closed down need not worry. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said Rs300 million has been approved to expand the airport and rejected speculation that operations would be suspended.

When contacted, BKIA CAA Manager Tahir Sikandar told The Express Tribune Rs300 million was allocated for the expansion of the airport by the federal government, adding a team from National Engineering Services Pakistan (NESPAK) was scheduled to arrive in a day or two.

Speaking about the suspension of nighttime flights, he said the attack in June, 2014 on PIA Flight-756 was not the only reason. Given the volatile law and order situation in K-P, passengers were reluctant to fly at night, he elaborated. “People from far-flung areas including Swat, Parachinar, Waziristan, Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan usually stay overnight if they arrive in the provincial capital and prefer taking day flights,” said Sikandar. He added the suspension of night flights has led to a sudden increase in activity at the airport during the day.

“When we say the airport is being expanded, it clearly indicates reports of the suspension of operations at BKIA are baseless rumours,” he asserted. Sikandar said with the exception of one airline, all the others operating from BKIA had increased their flights, making it difficult for the airport staff to deal with the situation.

“Once the airport is expanded, we will have more space to accommodate the increasing number of passengers,” he said.

Other officials said airport authorities were also dealing with non-scheduled flights after the suspension of nighttime operations. One of them shared Air Blue started flights to Chitral, whereas Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) also increased its operations for flights to and from Karachi.

“Sometimes we have to deal with flights not mentioned in the daily schedule and the work load doubles,” said the official. He added CAA planned on expanding both domestic and international lounges as well.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2014.