newage: Jinnah International Airport

jinnah International Airport

"KHI" redirects here. For other uses, see KHI (disambiguation).

Jinnah International Airport Quaid-e-Azam International Airport قاۂد اعظم بین الاقوامی ہوائی اڈا


IATA: KHI – ICAO: OPKC KHI Location of airport in Pakistan
Summary
Airport type		Public
Owner/Operator		Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan
Serves		Karachi
Location		Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Hub for		Airblue Pakistan International Airlines Shaheen Air
Elevation AMSL		100 ft / 30 m
Coordinates		24°54′24″N 067°09′39″E
Website		www.karachiairport.com.pk
Runways
Direction	Length		Surface
Direction	m	ft	Surface
07R/25L	3,400	11,155	Concrete
07L/25R	3,200	10,500	Concrete
Statistics (2007)
Passengers			6,081,448^[1]
Cargo handled			169,124 M.Tons
Sources: DAFIF^[2]

Jinnah International Airport (Urdu: جناح بین الاقوامی ہوائی اڈا) (IATA: KHI, ICAO: OPKC) (previously Quaid-e-Azam International Airport قاۂد اعظم بین الاقوامی ہوائی اڈا) is Pakistan's largestinternational and domestic airport. It is located in Karachi, Pakistan, and its passenger terminal is also commonly known as the جناح ٹرمینل Jinnah Terminal. The airport is named after Crown attorney/statesman Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan and its first Governor General, who was popularly known as the Quaid-e-Azam ("Great Leader").

The airport provides primary hub for the flag carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA),Shaheen Air International, and Airblue as well as many other private airlines. The airport is equipped with aircraft engineering and overhauling facilities including the Ispahani Hangar forwide-body aircraft.

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[edit]History

Tata Airlines, an early pioneer in air travel in South Asia, started as a air mail service from Karachi to Mumbai

Karachi Port Trust Airport in 1943 during World War II

PIA aircraft at Karachi airport in the 1980s

J. R. D. Tata, the father of civil aviation in pre-partition India made India's maiden voyage from Juhu Aerodrome in Bombay to Drigh Road airstrip (Now Jinnah International Airport), Karachi, viaAhmedabad, on 15 October 1932 carrying mail in aPuss Moth aircraft.^[3]

During the 1940s there was a large black colouredhangar (also locally known as Kala Chapra) at the site of Karachi Airport, constructed for the British R101 Airship. Only three hangars were ever built in the world to dock and hangar the R101 airships. However, the R101 airship never arrived in Karachi (then part of the British Raj) as it crashed early in its journey in France. This hangar was so huge that aircraft often used it as a visual marker while attempting VFR landings at Karachi. Over the years, the hangar became known as the landmark of Karachi, until it was torn down by order of then-President Ayub Khan in the 1960s.

During World War II, Karachi Airport was a major transhipment base for United States Army Air Force units and equipment being used by Tenth Air Force in eastern India and Burma, as well as for Fourteenth Air Force in China. Several operational bomber and fighter units flew into Karachi for short organizational periods prior to their deployment. Air Technical Service Command had extensive facilities where aircraft were received, assembled and tested prior to being flown to their combat units at forward airfields. It also functioned as a major maintenance and supply depot for both air forces. In addition, Air Transport Command flew numerous cargo and passenger flights to the Middle East and to points within India and China.

The airport facilities were further expanded in the 1980s to Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 respectively. The present day infrastructure of Jinnah International Complex is a result of an expansion programme carried out in 1994. Today, the new Jinnah Terminal handles both domestic and international flights, whereas Terminal 2 is now dedicated to Hajj operations.^[4]

Karachi was once a much busier airport. Between the 1960s and 1980s it was an online station of several major airlines of the world including British Airways, Interflug, TAROM, Alitalia, JAT Yugoslavia Airlines, Aeroflot, Philippine Airlines, Nigeria Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, EgyptAir,East African Airways, Kenya Airways, Air France, Qantas, Pan Am, Royal Jordanian, Libyan Arab Airlines, Japan Airlines, Syrian Arab Airlines, Middle East Airlines, Lufthansa, Swissair, and SAS. Other former airlines were Azerbaijan Airlines, Garuda Indonesia, Kazakhstan Airlines, KLM,Kuwait Airways, Kyrgyzstan Airlines, Libyan Arab Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Transportes Aéreos da Índia Portuguesa, and Uzbekistan Airways. However, due to the emergence of Dubai's airport on the world map, increased usage of longer haul aircraft, and the poor political climate of Karachi during the 1990s, several airlines discontinued their service to the airport.

In the past couple of years Karachi has seen a reversal in fortunes. The dwindling numbers of international airlines have stabilised and whilst there hasn't been a marked increase in the number of airlines flying in to Karachi, some have either increased the number of flights or resumed their old operations, either online or via codeshare service.

Economic factors may be partly responsible for the upswing in activity at the airport. As industrial growth in Karachi and the rest of Pakistan expands, some European and Asian carriers are mooting resumption of services to Jinnah International.

[edit]Structure

Front view of Jinnah International

Airside area

A coffee kiosk at the international departure lounge

Aerial view of Karachi Airport taken in 2010

Jinnah International Airport has a capacity of handling 12 million passengers annually. In fiscal year 2007-2008, over 6.6 million passengers used Jinnah International Airport. 249,283 aircraft movements were registered.^[5]

Jinnah International Airport in Karachi has always been the largest aviation facility in Pakistan. It is the primary hub of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). All other Pakistani airlines also use Jinnah International Airport as their main hub. These include airblue and Shaheen Air International, as well as several charter carriers.

The building is linked via connecting corridors to two satellites, each having a provision of eight passenger-loading bridges. The eastern satellite is devoted exclusively to handling international operations. The western satellite is used for domestic operations, as well as some international operations. This is achieved through a flexible arrangement of gates. The two satellites supplement the departure lounges of the terminal building and also provide shopping facilities and snack counters.

The Jinnah Terminal was completed in 1992 at a cost of US $100 million - at the time the most expensive civil construction project in Pakistan. NESPAK (National Engineering Services Pakistan) and Airconsult (Frankfurt, Germany) were responsible for the architecture and planning of the terminal. Sogea Construction, a French company, was the contractor. Mukhtar Husain (NESPAK) was the Chief Architect for the new terminal.

In Karachi, the CIP Lounge can be used by all first and business class passengers on all outbound flights. Private banking clients of MCB Bank Ltd and United Bank Ltd can also use the lounge on complimentary basis under contract to CAA as part of their benefits package. Only passengers who have been pre-issued an airline card from the check-in desk can enter the lounge. Other passengers who wish to use the lounge may do so upon payment of charges of USD 6.00 (international) or PKR 100/- (domestic). The lounge features light savoury snacks and non-alcoholic beverages, satellite TV, audio entertainment, newspapers, magazines, telephones, fax facilities, wireless Internet, and mobile charging points. There are also two McDonald's kiosks located on-site at the airport. airblue has also introduced their own lounge in the international terminal of the airport.^[6]

There are a number of banks that passengers can use at the airport including Askari Bank,Barclays, Citibank, Habib Bank, National Bank of Pakistan, MCB Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and United Bank; which offer ATMs, foreign exchange facilities, traveler's cheque encashment, and personal banking. Private banking clients of Barclays worldwide (high net-worth individuals) now have their dedicated lounge as well. It features a hot buffet with fusion chef-inspired cuisine, speciality coffees and mocktails, afternoon high tea, multimedia entertainment, global newspapers/magazines, shower and spa facility, both wifi and PC kiosk Internet, and round-the-clock dedicated concierge services.

The airport is also where the majority of PIA's maintenance network is located, although some of its maintenance work also takes place at Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Rawalpindi. There are several hangars at the airport; the largest being the Ispahani Hangar (named after Mirza Ahmad Ispahani, the first chairman of PIA) that can accommodate two Boeing 747s and one narrow body airliner (e.g. Boeing 737) at one time. On 15 February 2006, the first major overhaul of a Boeing 777-200ER aircraft (known as "C" check) was done at Ispahani Hangar. Most of the PIA aircraft are checked and regulated at the aircraft hangars in Karachi. The PIA maintenance also check other airline aircraft in Karachi such as Philippine Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Air Universal.

The head office of the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan is located in Terminal 1.^[7] Pakistan International Airlines has its head office on the grounds of the airport (PIA Building),^[8] as well as its central mainframe (CRC Building) which also houses its frequent flyer programme, Awards +, as well as hosting SITA Bagtrak, the shared International Air Transport Association global lost luggage tracking computer network. PIA Engineering HQ, Cargo Village, and Flight Kitchen are also located here. Terminals 1 and Jinnah West also boast round-the-clock PIA booking offices and ticketing auto-kiosks. PIA Building also has a ticketing facility, but only for PIA staff, their dependents, and authorised third-party contractors.^{[citation needed]} Shaheen Air also has its head office on the airport property.^[9]

[edit]Runways and parking

The airport has two runways measuring 3,200m and 3,400m in length respectively. Runways, 25R/07L and 25L/07R each have a width of 46 m (250 ft). The runways have capacity to handle 15 flights per hour and it accommodate simultaneous landing and take off. Runway 07L/25R is equipped with ILS to guide landing aircraft safely under very poor weather conditions and also allowing planes to land in low visibility conditions, such as fog.^[10] The taxiway is able to handle 12 aircraft at any one moment while the parking area measures 266,000 sq meters and is able to accommodate 42 aircraft, 12 of which through air bridges linking them directly with the terminal building. In addition to this, there are remote parking bays for 30 aircraft.

[edit]Ispahani hangar

The Ispahani Hangar is PIA's wide-body aircraft maintenance hangar at Jinnah International Airport. It has been named in honor of Mr. Mirza Ahmad Ispahani. Mirza Ahmad Ispahani was the first and longest serving chairman of Pakistan International Airlines from its inception until 1962. The new jet hangar for wide body and narrow body aircraft with a supporting airframe overhaul shop was completed and commissioned in 1968.

Most of the PIA aircraft are checked and regulated at the aircraft hangars in Karachi. The PIA maintenance also check other airline aircraft in Karachi such as Philippine Airlines and Turkish Airlines.

[edit]Terminals, airlines and destinations

Jinnah Airport has one main terminal, divided into two concourses:^[11]

The Jinnah East Satellite Concourse, used for international flights
The Jinnah West Satellite Concourse, used for domestic flights

A PIA Boeing 747-300 at the Domestic Satellite

A leased MNG Airlines Boeing 737-200aircraft being prepared for a Hajj flight, 2006

airblue Airbus A320-200 taxing out to the runway

Airlines	Destinations	Concourse
Air Arabia	Sharjah	East
Air China	Beijing-Capital, Chengdu	East
airblue	Dubai	East
airblue	Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar	West
Biman Bangladesh Airlines	Dhaka	East
Cathay Pacific	Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Hong Kong	East
Emirates	Dubai	East
Etihad Airways	Abu Dhabi	East
flydubai	Dubai	East
GMG Airlines	Dhaka	East
Gulf Air	Bahrain	East
Iran Air	Tehran-Imam Khomeini	East
Iraqi Airways	Baghdad, Basra ¹	East
Malaysia Airlines	Kuala Lumpur, Dubai	East
Nas Air	Jeddah, Riyadh	East
Oman Air	Muscat	East
Pakistan International Airlines	Bahawalpur, Dalbandin, Dera Ghazi Khan, Dera Ismail Khan, Faisalabad, Gwadar, Islamabad, Lahore, Moenjodaro, Multan, Panjgur, Peshawar, Quetta, Rahim Yar Khan, Sialkot, Sukkur, Turbat, Zhob	West
Pakistan International Airlines	Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Barcelona, Beijing-Capital, Chicago-O'Hare, Colombo, Dammam, Delhi, Dhaka, Doha, Dubai, Istanbul-Atatürk, Jeddah, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, London-Heathrow, Manchester, Medina, Mumbai, Muscat, New York-JFK, Riyadh, Tokyo-Narita, Toronto-Pearson, Zahedan	East
Qatar Airways	Doha	East
Saudi Arabian Airlines	Dammam, Jeddah, Medina, Riyadh	East
Shaheen Air International	Dammam, Dubai	East
Shaheen Air International	Islamabad, Lahore, Peshawar	West
SriLankan Airlines	Colombo	East
Thai Airways International	Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Muscat	East
Turkish Airlines	Dhaka, Istanbul-Atatürk	East

Notes:
^1 : Iraqi Airways service on the sector BGW/BSR - KHI vv is routed via BAH. However they do not have fifth freedom traffic rights BAH - KHI vv.

[edit]Cargo terminal

A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747-412 during takeoff from Karachi

Antonov An-225 parked at Jinnah International, Cargo terminal

Airlines	Destinations
Askari Aviation	Islamabad, Lahore
Cargolux	Luxembourg
DHL International Aviation ME	Bahrain
Etihad Crystal Cargo operted by World Airways	Abu Dhabi, Kabul
Eurex Cargo	Istanbul
Falcon Express Cargo Airlines	Dubai
Midex Airlines	Al Ain
Phoenix Aviation	Bishkek, Sharjah
Qatar Airways Cargo	Doha
Royal Airlines Cargo	Lahore, Islamabad
Shaheen Air International	Dubai
SriLankan Airlines Cargo operated by Expo Aviation	Seasonal: Colombo
TCS Courier	Dubai, Islamabad, Lahore, London
ULS Airlines Cargo	Istanbul