Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced on Thursday that it would be resuming direct Lahore-London flights on March 30.

According to a statement issued by the PIA spokesperson, the airline was enhancing its flights to the United Kingdom.

“After the resumption of flights to Manchester and the announcement of flights from Islamabad to London from March 29, the airline has also finalised arrangements for the launch of a direct flight from Lahore to London from March 30,” the spokesperson said.

He added it would operate up to seven flights to the UK by the end of March.

He added that flights were being increased in light of the high demand and long-standing requests of Pakistanis and expatriates residing in the UK.

“All flights to the UK are operating on full loads,” he added.

The relaunch dates of Islamabad-London and Lahore-London flights were arranged for consecutive dates driven by demand and the airline’s readiness, the spokesperson said.

The airline will operate flights three times a week from Islamabad to London and one flight a week from Lahore to London, he said, adding it was also planning to operate more flights from Pakistan to other UK destinations in the future, while flights to London would be increased gradually.

He said the airline used to operate more than “22 frequencies” to the UK and expected to exceed this number.

In June 2020, the European Union Air Safety Agency had barred 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, where 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 2025, PIA received the go-ahead 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.

Two months ago, the airline announced it was resuming direct flights to London in March 2026 after a six-year hiatus.