Karachi Airport Terminal 1 Building to be Retrofitted

[Abbas Ali]

Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) – www.caapakistan.com.pk – tender notice which appeared in April 30, 2010 newspaper for structural evaluation and retrofitting design and drawings of Head-Quarters Civil Aviation Authority (HQCAA) located at Terminal 1 building, Jinnah International Air Port (JIAP), Karachi, Pakistan.

[Abbas Ali]

One thing that I like is the way Terminal 1 building has managed to retain its original facade/shape with small changes over a long period of time.


Karachi Airport terminal building on a 10 Annas Pakistan postage stamp issued in 1948.

Following photo shows how it looked like in 1960s.


And following photo shows how it looked in year 2006.


Abbas

[SalamPaks]

I consider Terminal One to be a part of the historical fabric of Pakistan and the South Asian sub-continent. As such, I would like to see a combination of restoration work, chiefly carried out on the facade, flooring, roof gardens, etc, and modernization of the interior facilities. Perhaps reserving it's use for a museum and/or VIP travel center would be appropriate too.

[MoHZ]

Could someone briefly explain to me what 'Terminal One' is?
Is it the Hajj terminal/Old Jinnah Terminal?

Behind it looks like some kind of Cargo complex similar to the one at Manchester.

[Zulfiqar]

Could someone briefly explain to me what 'Terminal One' is?
Is it the Hajj terminal/Old Jinnah Terminal?

Behind it looks like some kind of Cargo complex similar to the one at Manchester.

Well, it's the original terminal at Karachi, and housed both the domestic and international terminals. The as the demand increased a new terminals were constructed (1980s) about a kilometer or so to the east (terminal 2 and 3). Later (1990s), the present terminal called the Jinnah terminal was constructed (and the airport renamed as Jinnah International Airport). Terminal 2 I think is now used for Hajj flight. I do not recall the old terminal ever being called Jinnah terminal.

[Moin]

I hope they will preserve that historical structure. Its all been but forgotten. In its heyday that rooftop was lined with people coming to view a/c and they had restaurants up there, one of them being the Hostelerie De France which served food from AF first class which my parents were regulars at back in the 60's.

[Abbas Ali]

Apparently now Terminal 1 is used to house offices of CAA and some other aviation companies. Probably VIP flights/guests are also handled by Terminal 1 and is there 'Mehran Lounge' in Terminal 1 ?

Does anyone know when Terminal 1 was last used to handle passengers of scheduled commercial flights? Was usage of Terminal 1 for passenger flights stopped after construction of Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 at Karachi Airport ?

And before opening of Jinnah Terminal in 1992 was Terminal 2 used to handle arrivals of domestic/international flights and Terminal 3 to handle departures of domestic/international flights ?

And is now Terminal 2 used as Hajj Terminal to handle arrival of Hajj flights and Terminal 3 used as Hajj Terminal for departure of Hajj flights ?

Btw, on following link there's 1943 aerial photo of Karachi Airport Terminal 1. Photo taken during World War II.

Photo Link: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... ortWW2.jpg

Abbas

[Tayub]

After the Terminal 2 was completed, Terminal 1 was used as mix and match. In early 80's Terminal 1 was used for all departures, and domestic arrivals, and Terminal 2 for international arrivals. Later, T-2 mainly used for all International and domestic departures, including PIA and foreign airlines. Above configuration was changed many many times. Space has always been an issue at Karachi Airport.

After the construction of Terminal 3. All hell broke lose. It was mainly used for all International Departures, T 2 for PIA international arrivals and domestic departures. Terminal 1 for domestic arrivals and foreign airlines arrivals. From the West side of the airport, it was Terminal 1, then suddenly; Terminal 3, and then Terminal 2. Obviously, there were other buildings in-between them. There were no proper signs, lighting, or paved sidewalk. Passengers had to walk about 3/4 Km to reach Terminal 3 from Terminal 1. Many passengers transferring between the terminals were conned and looted by thugs.

[Abbas Ali]

^ Thank you for sharing details, really appreciate it very much. Was at later stage a complimentary bus transport service (bus painted in PIA colours) provided by PIA to transports its passengers between terminals 1, 2 and 3 at Karachi Airport during 1980s ?

Btw, here's a photo scanned from article on PIA titled 'Pride of Pakistan' published in February 14, 1958 edition of 'Flight International' magazine. The photo shows a PIA Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation parked at Karachi International Airport with building presently known as 'Terminal 1' visible in the background.


Following photo from mid-80s shows interior of Karachi Airport's Terminal 3.


Abbas

[Tayub]

You're welcome. Yes, PIA did arrange one single 'free' shuttle bus in PIA colors. It would be parked on farthest corner of the Terminal 1. You could hardly see it during the day. It was driven by Traffic Ground Support (TGS) drivers. Those drivers were crooks. They openly asked passengers for money in Dollars, Pound Sterling, and Riyals. They would drive the bus, only if their hands get warmed with the money. Otherwise, they will simply tell the passengers that it is not their time to move. Go figure!

The bus steps were about 2 1/2 feet high, and the doors were narrow like, old 'Kohistan Bus Service'. If you were a big person, you could hardly climb into the bus. So, forget about carrying your luggage into the bus. For personal safety, passengers were forced to hire a loader/porter at terminal 1 and paying them extra tip in foreign currency, who would push their cart to either Terminal 3 or 2. Then, pay to the driver, as well. It was a nightmare.

[Moin]

Yes I remember how inconveniently those other 2 terminals were designed. The parking lots were a nightmare and you can still see that maze today if you happen to be there.

[SalamPaks]

I liked Terminal One - it seemed to be just the right size, except between 1 and 4AM, when the very large departure lounge would often be completely full. Things seemed to work well when Terminal 2 was used for all International arrivals and Terminal One had domestic arrivals and all departures.