Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Pak flights to India to resume on Jan 1, Indian flights on Jan 9

IRNA

Islamabad, Dec 31, IRNA - Pakistan and India are resuming their 
air-links on Thursday after a period of two years suspension, 
officials said Wednesday. 
India suspended air and road links with Pakistan in early 2002 
following attack on Indian parliament in December 2001. 
Pakistan will operate six flights a week between Lahore-Delhi, 
Karachi-Delhi and Karachi-Mumbai, Pakistan Deputy Director General 
Civil Aviation Authority Air Vice Marshal Muhammad Abid said. 
He said with the re-opening of air flights with India, Civil 
Aviation Authority will provide over flight facilities to one 
hundred Indian flights in a week. 
A spokesman of Pakistan International Air Lines (PIA) said that 
first PIA flight will leave Lahore at 2.20 pm on Thursday for Delhi 
to mark the re-opening of air link with India. 
Pakistan International Airlines will also re-start its flights 
for the capitals of three SAARC countries Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and 
Nepal on January 1. 
A PIA spokesman in Karachi said that the first PIA flight will 
leave for Colombo tomorrow. He said flights between Karachi and 
Dhaka will start operating from Saturday next while flights between 
Karachi and Kathmandu will re-start from Sunday next. 
Flights for Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal were suspended on the 
first of January 2002 due to ban on over flight on PIA flights put by 
India. 
In the meantime, Indian Airlines will start flying to Pakistan 
from Jan 9, an Indian diplomat here told IRNA. 
Press Attache Ramesh Chandra held unavoidable technical matters 
responsible for the delay, adding that Indian Airlines offices in 
Lahore and Karachi have already resumed their activities. 
"India will operate four flights a week between Delhi-Karachi and 
Mumbai-Karachi," he said. 
TK/TSH/213 
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