PAF C-130s start operating PIA flights to Northern Areas

Abbas Ali · Post by **Abbas Ali** » Fri Jul 14, 2006 4:19 pm

ISLAMABAD, July 14 (APP): Pakistan Air Force (PAF) has started operating its fleet of C-130s aircraft to airlift the passengers in the Northern Areas with immediate effect.

PAF C-130s have launched passenger services operations on the Islamabad-Gilgit and Peshawar-Chitral routes.

Earlier, PIA Fokker flights were operating on these Northern Areas air routes.

The decision to employ PAF C-130s for uplifting PIA passengers has been taken to reduce the hardships caused to the people due to grounding of PIA Fokker aircraft by the government.

Source: Associated Press of Pakistan

Abbas Ali · Post by **Abbas Ali** » Sat Jul 15, 2006 7:58 am

The PAF C-130s are fitted with 80 seats to operate PIA flights.

From time to time PAF C-130s have flown as passenger transport aircraft.

For example PAF C-130s have flown:

* As VVIP aircraft to transport country's leaders including President and Prime Minister.

* As passenger aircraft on Hajj flight to transport PAF Hajjis contingent to Jeddah.

* As passenger aircraft to fly PAF officers from one place to another.

Abbas Ali · Post by **Abbas Ali** » Sun Jul 16, 2006 3:41 am

PIA starts daily C-130 flight to Peshawar, Chitral, Gilgit

M RAFIQ GORAYA

ISLAMABAD (July 16 2006): After grounding of six ageing and over-used Fokker F-27 aircraft, the national airline, PIA, has started direct Islamabad-Peshawar-Chitral and Islamabad-Gilgit C-130 flights with the co-operation of the Pakistan Air Force, which has provided two C-130s to make daily flights to Chitral and Gilgit.

A C-130 aircraft, flown by PAF pilots and engineers, left for Peshawar and Chitral on Saturday morning with more than 80 passengers and the PIA crew as an alternative arrangement for decades-old Fokker planes.

Another PAF C-130 aircraft with 80 passengers on board landed at Gilgit and came back with Islamabad-bound passengers from Gilgit on Saturday.

Earlier, on these routes depending on the weather conditions, two to three Fokker F-27 aircraft used to make daily sorties, but after crash of a Fokker at Multan, the federal government ordered the PIA to ground these accident-prone aircraft.

PAF sources told Business Recorder that this arrangement is expected to continue till PIA purchases/chartered its own aircraft which could land and take off in these mountainous and difficult areas.

They said the national airline had already ordered seven ATR 42-500 twin turbo-prop passenger aircraft in November 2005 to replace the ageing Fokker F-27; one of them has already arrived which is now flying on the Lahore-Multan-Bahawalpur route. Sources said that another is expected to join PIA fleet in September and the rest would be handed over to PIA in April next year.

Source: Business Recorder

Abbas Ali · Post by **Abbas Ali** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 10:06 am

ISLAMABAD - July 15, 2006: Security officials check documents of foreign passengers boarding Pakistan Air Force C-130 plane at Chaklala Air Base for their flight to Gilgit on Saturday. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz had ordered grounding of Fokker aircraft after the crash of a plane in Multan that killed 45 people.

Source: DAWN

Gulistan · Post by **Gulistan** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 10:22 am

In terms of age, there is hardly any difference between PAF C130 and the Fokkers, some of the 130, are even older

Anothere knee jerk reaction.