PIA's Saudi Arabia operation becomes fully operational

Saudi Arabia’s ban on direct travel from Pakistan and several other countries had come to an end

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – After the easing of travel restrictions by Saudi Arabia, Pakistan International Airlines’s (PIA) Saudi Arabia operation has become fully operational and the first flight of the national airline carrying 121 passengers reached Madinah from Multan.

According to a spokesperson of the PIA, five flights will be operated after the flight operation became operational and a total of 1400 passengers will arrive in Saudi Arabia.

Flights will depart from Lahore to Jeddah, from Islamabad to Jeddah, from Lahore to Dammam, from Islamabad to Riyadh and from Karachi to Madinah Munawara while on Friday 1130 passengers will arrive in Saudi Arabia via 4 flights and PIA will operate 33 flights this week which will increase to 48 next week.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia’s ban on direct travel from Pakistan and several other countries had come to an end as the country continues to relax travel restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Kingdom suspended all flights to and from the kingdom on March 14, 2020, after the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic.

Entry to the kingdom by air, land and sea resumed on January 3, 2021, though a direct entry ban was imposed on certain countries of concern the following month.

Now, however, travelers from six countries — India, Egypt, Pakistan, Indonesia, Brazil and Vietnam — can arrive in the Kingdom without having to spend 14 days outside those countries before entering Saudi Arabia.

The travelers will need a valid, polymerase chain reaction PCR certificate and register on the Qdoom platform 72 hours before their flight departs. They will need to enter institutional quarantine for five days when they arrive, regardless of their immunization status outside the kingdom, and will need to take tests on the first and fifth days of their quarantine.