Pakistani airlines are under pressure as Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has warned of possible penalties due to repeated delays in Umrah flights. The Saudi aviation regulator issued a letter to Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), stressing that airlines must ensure timely operations.
According to international aviation standards, the airlines are required to maintain at least 80 percent on-time performance. However, the punctuality rate of Pakistani carriers falls far short ranging only between 37 and 69 percent.
The breakdown shows PIA at 69 percent, Airblue 65 percent, AirSial 46 percent, Fly Jinnah 43 percent, and Serene Air at just 37 percent. GACA has directed Pakistan’s CAA to address the matter immediately, warning that failure to improve could result in heavy fines. The delays, it added, have caused serious problems for passengers traveling for Umrah.
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The letter was written by the President of GACA and addressed to the Director General of Pakistan’s CAA.
This development comes as Saudi Arabia recently recorded over 1.67 million pilgrims performing Hajj, including 1.5 million international pilgrims from 171 countries. Notably, this year also witnessed one of the most balanced gender ratios in Hajj history, with 877,841 men and 795,389 women.
