Shaheen Air Begins Flying Four Times A Week To Kl International Airport

SEPANG –Shaheen Air, a private Pakistani carrier, has started its four times weekly flights to KL International Airport (KLIA). Its inaugural flight arrived today at 10 am and was welcomed with the traditional water turret salute by Malaysia Airports Airport Fire and Rescue Services. The four times a week service from Lahore – Kuala Lumpur – Karachi (Monday and Friday) and Karachi- Kuala Lumpur – Lahore (Tuesday and Saturday) operates using an Airbus A330-200 aircraft in all-Economy class configuration.

Passengers on the inaugural flight were delighted to be greeted by a Malaysian cultural troupe. Also present to greet them were His Excellency Dato’ Dr. Hasrul Sani Mujtabar, High Commissioner of Malaysia to Pakistan, YBhg. Datuk Musa Haji Yusof, Senior Director, International Promotion Division (Asia/Africa), Tourism Malaysia and the senior management of Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad.

Dato’ Abd Hamid Mohd Ali, Chief Operating Officer of Malaysia Airports said, “Malaysia Airports is delighted to welcome Shaheen Air, to KL International Airport. The inclusion of Shaheen Air into the KLIA family will further promote its status as a preferred hub in this region. Travellers now will have the option to use KLIA via Shaheen Air as a connector to the major cities of Pakistan and the Persian Gulf. I am confident it will also enhance the image and reputation of Shaheen Air as a transportation conduit among air travellers in this region.”

“Malaysia’s tourism sector with its offer of cultural diversity, beautiful tropical landscapes and booming retail sector, has always attracted a significant number of Pakistani travellers, with a total of 66,400 tourists arriving into Malaysia in 2015 alone,” he added.

Mr. Faisal Rafique, Chief Commercial Officer of Shaheen Air was on board the inaugural flight, which was nearly fully booked with 326 passengers. He spoke to members of the media and other guests who came to the airport to welcome the first passengers arrived from Lahore via Shaheen Air flight NL 872.

“In recent years, Malaysia has been a quite popular destination for Pakistani tourists, as such we feel that we will be fulfilling a strong market demand.  We also hope that this route will serve as an air bridge for the further development of long-term friendly relations between our two countries in the fields of trade and investment, as well as accelerating the development of tourism.”

Headquartered in Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, the carrier's secondary hubs are at Benazir Bhutto International Airport (ISB), Islamabad and  Allama Iqbal International Airport (LHE), Lahore.