Pakistan International Airlines | PIA

PIA was established in February 1946, and is based at Karachi Airport. The airline operates scheduled services to many countries in Asia, Africa and Europe. The airline has its headquarters in Karachi, Sindh Province. Since 1948, it has been headquartered at Civil Air Terminal (Kharafi Road) in Karachi, Sindh province. Its main base is Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Rawalpindi, from where it flies to all major cities of Pakistan. It also operates regional routes to Quetta and Gilgit Baltistan. The airline was founded on 15 December 1947 as Air Transport Services by the then Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan. The airline serves over 200 destinations across the world including Asia, Europe, Middle East and North America. The airline has its own fleet of Boeing planes which are used for domestic flights and international flights.

It is headquartered in Karachi and is currently a part of the state-owned Pakistan International Airlines Group (PIA). The airline was founded on 1 January 1958 as East Pakistan Airways Limited. The airline's name was changed to East Pakistan Airways Corporation Limited in 1961, East Pakistan State Transport Company Limited in 1965, and East Pakistan State Airlines Corporation (EPSA) Limited on 1 April 1968. In 1972, the government renamed it again as Pakistan International Airlines. PIA's first flight took place on 1 April 1958 with a Douglas DC-3 aircraft flying between Karachi and Dhaka. The airline became fully owned by the Government of Pakistan in 1974 when it purchased all shares from their previous owners. In 1983, PIA suspended its operations due to financial constraints. In 1986, PIA resumed operations after receiving financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In 1990, PIA introduced its new livery which featured a modernized logo and new tail design. Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is the national airline of Pakistan, headquartered at Lahore. It was established in 1947, and is owned by the Government of Pakistan. PIA is a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA). PIA operates scheduled flights to 58 destinations in 28 countries. Its main base is Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore. The airline's slogan is "Fly Pakistan" and its mascot is a blue jay. The airline acquired its first aircraft, a Douglas DC-3 from United States in 1948. It was later converted into an airliner named Shahjahan. In 1953 it acquired a Douglas DC-6B Clipper named Shah Gazi which was operated on all routes except Karachi-Lahore route because of its fuel shortage at that time.

PIA operates international services to over 100 destinations, including major cities in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Its fleet consists of Boeing 737 aircraft. It is based at the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Sindh. It operates scheduled services to major cities and towns of Pakistan as well as some international destinations from Karachi. The airline was established in 1948 as Pakistan International Airways Limited, which it remained until 2002 when it was renamed as PIA. It has been a subsidiary of the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan since then. In 2012, it was ranked the best performing aviation company in Asia. In 2013, PIA saw an increase in its fleet size with introduction of new Boeing 737-800/-900/-1000 aircraft.

It is the country's largest and oldest airline, founded on July 29, 1948 as Pakistan International Airways by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to provide air transport between Pakistan and other countries; it was renamed Pakistan International Airlines on 1 November 1949. The airline was nationalized in 1972, and has been serving international flights since 1974. In March 2011, PIA announced that all its routes would be suspended by the end of March 2012 due to financial problems. This suspension was later extended until October 2012.