FCCI president says spacious runway and modern airport terminal imperative to meet future needs of vibrant city of Punjab
FAISALABAD: The Emirates Airline has given its consent to start 3-4 flights per week from Faisalabad provided these were found economically feasible, said Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) President Rizwan Ashraf.
He was talking to a delegation of local businessmen in his office. The FCCI president said that direct international flights from Faisalabad were on the top of his agenda and he had met the delegation of the Emirates Airline for this purpose.
“I requested the local management of this airline to immediately take measures to start direct flights linking Faisalabad with other international destinations,” he added. He said that management of Emirates Airline was of the view that there was no technical hitch; however these flights should be economically feasible.
Ashraf said, “I have collected data of passenger load and forwarded it to the airline enabling it to immediately process our request.”
He also said that a spacious runway and modern airport terminal was also imperative to meet the future needs of this vibrant city of central Punjab. He said that a new airport could be developed on the pattern of Sialkot on the basis of public-private partnership. Comparing Faisalabad and Sialkot, the FCCI president said that Shaheen Air was successfully providing its services as 90 percent small shipments were dispatched by air from Sialkot. On the other hand the shipments from Faisalabad were heavy and were feasible only by sea.
“However, we are in contact with the government and various private airlines to carve out a viable solution to this problem,” he concluded.
