Pakistan Government Proposes to Establish an International Airline - 1949 Newspaper Report

[Abbas Ali]

From The Past Pages of DAWN: 1949: Seventy-five years ago: International airline

KARACHI: The Pakistan Government has proposed to open an international airline, it was reliably learned on Wednesday (November 16, 1949). The likely route will be from Karachi to London and is expected to pass through various Middle Eastern and West European countries. Later on the route may be expanded.

As the Pakistan Government has already entered into bilateral air agreements with 11 countries, including the UK, France and Denmark, if and when they operate the airline, they will get easy passage for their aircraft through these countries.

It is believed that to start with the government will hire aircraft with the staff to man them. Pakistan has already a chartered aircraft operating (once a month) between Karachi and London mainly for personnel of the Pakistan armed forces going home on leave.

It is understood that a Pakistani international airline will be a sound economic proposition in terms of greater facilities and in regard to cheap fares.

Source: DAWN

[Abbas Ali]

Pakistan decided in 1951 that it needed a national flag carrier airline; the government of the country accordingly established Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in this role, and on May 25, 1951, ordered three examples of the Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation four-engined airliner as the new operator's initial equipment. PIA flew its first service with the Super Constellation on June 7, 1954, on the route linking Karachi and Dacca (now Dhaka), which were the main cities of the country's western and eastern halves, of which the later is now Bangladesh.

On February 1, 1955, PIA flew its first international service, between Karachi and London via Cairo.


PIA advertisement from summer of 1955 promoting airline's first international service from Karachi to London via Cairo operated with brand new and luxurious Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation aircraft

Abbas