RAWALPINDI: Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways is to start operation from Pakistan nearly two months after coronavirus-related lockdown, with flights scheduled from Karachi and Lahore on June 13.

According to a senior aviation official, Etihad Airways will be resuming its twice-weekly flights from Karachi and Lahore for outbound passengers only.

“Etihad Airways can’t bring passengers from abroad [inbound] due to government restrictions; however, they are allowed to repatriate people stranded in Pakistan,” said the official.

The limited flight operation is expected to restart from Islamabad very soon, he added.

Earlier, Etihad Airways had suspended flights to Pakistan since a ban on commercial flights was imposed on March 21 to contain the spread of Covid-19, the disease caused by new coronavirus.

Pakistan had also suspended international flight operations on March 21 for two weeks to limit the spread of Covid-19. It was later extended to May 31.

According to the airline’s website, “Until June 30, 2020, we’ll be operating a number of flights between Abu Dhabi and destinations around the world.”

Published in Dawn, June 11th, 2020