LAHORE, Sept 1: The Lahore airport main runway was reopened on Saturday after a 29-hour closure due to skidding off a plane while landing.

The flight schedule of all international flights of the PIA and foreign airlines remained disrupted between Friday 3pm and Saturday 8pm. Even domestic operation was affected as on Saturday two Karachi-Lahore-Karachi flights were delayed.

The Civil Aviation Authority after the incident had opened emergency runway for domestic flights.

On Friday, an ATR aircraft carrying 42 passengers and four crew members from Islamabad skidded off the runway while landing due to heavy rain.

During a preliminary investigation, it was revealed that the pilot landed the plane some 500 to 600 metres ahead of the start of the main runway, damaging its tyres and gear.

PIA and CAA teams launched their investigation on Friday, but could not decide till Saturday 7pm that the plane should be moved to clear the runway.

An official told Dawn the PIA, the CAA and the insurance company were involved in assessing the damage and other related issues that was why they took time to move the damaged plane.