Dubai: Biman Bangladesh Airlines will resume direct passenger flights between Dhaka and Karachi from January 29, restoring an air link that has been inactive for more than a decade.
The Bangladeshi flag carrier last operated regular services on the route in 2012. The revived service will run twice weekly, on Thursdays and Saturdays, with evening departures from Dhaka and overnight returns from Karachi.
According to the airline’s schedule, flights will depart Dhaka at 8pm, arriving in Karachi at 11pm after a journey of about three hours. Return services will leave Karachi at midnight and land in Dhaka at approximately 4.20am.
A route closed for years
Direct air connectivity between the two cities had gradually disappeared amid strained bilateral relations and commercial challenges. Pakistan International Airlines operated the route until 2018, when mounting financial losses led to its suspension.
In the absence of nonstop flights, passengers travelling between Bangladesh and Pakistan were forced to transit through Middle Eastern hubs, often adding significant time and cost to journeys.
Diplomatic thaw supports relaunch
The resumption follows a broader improvement in relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan after political changes in Dhaka in 2024.
Following the student-led movement that removed former prime minister Sheikh Hasina from office, high-level diplomatic engagement resumed. Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar visited Dhaka in August, marking the most senior bilateral visit in over a decade and resulting in renewed trade and cooperation agreements.
Since then, cargo vessels have begun sailing directly from Karachi to Chittagong Port, and Pakistani private carrier AirSial has received approval to operate flights to Bangladesh.
Trial phase for demand
Pakistan’s aviation regulator, the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority, has granted Biman a three-month operating permit valid until March 26. The limited approval allows both sides to assess passenger demand before considering longer-term arrangements.
Biman timed the relaunch after temporarily suspending its Manchester service to reallocate aircraft capacity ahead of the Hajj season, creating room in its network for the Karachi route.
The Dhaka–Karachi service will be operated using either narrow-body or wide-body aircraft, depending on availability, on the roughly 3,300-kilometre sector.
