ISLAMABAD: Business leaders in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi will soon launch a new airline inspired by the success of Air Sial, which was established by their counterparts in Sialkot, a Pakistani city renowned for its cottage industries, according to a former leader of the Association of Builders and Developers of Pakistan on Wednesday.
The development comes as Pakistan witnesses the rise of private airlines amid the financial and administrative troubles faced by its national carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), which the government is working to privatize.
Hanif Gohar, who until recently was the association’s chairman, said the idea resonated with Karachi’s business community when he shared it following the launch of Air Sial.
“When I discussed the idea of an airline with Air Vice Marshal Imran Qadir, the recently retired Southern Commander of the Pakistan Air Force, he offered his expertise,” he told Arab News. “Subsequently, I presented it to the business community, which also supported it.”
Air Sial was launched with contributions of Rs10 million ($35,900) each from 300 businessmen, raising a total of Rs3 billion ($10.8 million) before its inauguration and the launch of its first domestic flight in December 2020. The airline began international operations in March 2023 with a flight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The proposed carrier, Air Karachi, plans to pool Rs50 million ($179,502) from each of its 100 shareholders, totaling Rs5 billion ($18 million).
“The response was so enthusiastic that some business families proposed multiple shareholders,” Gohar said.
He added that the process of launching the airline has already begun.
“We have registered Air Karachi with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and completed other formalities,” he said. “Once the government issues the license, which is expected soon, we will acquire three aircraft to launch domestic flights.”
Gohar further said that after the mandatory one year of domestic operations, the airline will expand its fleet to seven and begin international flights to the Middle East.a
He informed that Air Vice Marshal Qadir had been appointed the chief operating officer of Air Karachi, while a team of retired Air Force officials with extensive aviation experience has been assembled to support the initiative.
Notable shareholders in the venture include Pakistani business tycoons Aqeel Karim Dhedhi, Arif Habib, S.M. Tanveer, Bashir Jan Muhammad, Khalid Tawab, Zubair Tufail and Hamza Tabani.
The idea of a Karachi-based airline gained attention earlier this month after former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif advised his daughter and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to acquire PIA and rename it Air Punjab.
Following offers from the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments to purchase PIA, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori revealed that Karachi’s traders were also interested in acquiring the national airline.
“Karachi’s businesspersons are constantly contacting me to talk about the airline’s matters,” Tessori wrote on the social media platform X on Monday. “Karachi’s businesspersons want the PIA to be given to them for a year, and they are also interested in starting a new airline.”

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan have signed 13 memorandums of understanding worth $250 with China to export fruits and vegetables, seafood and animal feed and establish joint ventures in Pakistan, state media reported on Wednesday. 

The agreements were signed at the Pakistan-China B2B Conference held in Beijing with the participation of over 200 representatives from business groups in both nations. Pakistani officials used the forum to provide insights into the investment potential of the animal feed and fruit and vegetable processing industries. Several incentives for foreign investors were highlighted, including 100 percent foreign ownership, unrestricted profit and dividend repatriation, and zero import tariffs on factory equipment and machinery.

This is the third sector-wise Pakistan-China B2B meeting this year, with the first held in Qingdao with a focus on fishery companies, the second in Guangzhou for footwear, and the fourth slated to take place in Suzhou in December.

“Pakistan and China have signed thirteen MoUs on fostering joint ventures in animal fodder, fruits and vegetables processing sectors,” Radio Pakistan said. “The MoUs valued at 250 million US dollars were signed between Pakistani and Chinese companies in Beijing.”

Ghulam Qadir, Commercial Counsellor at the Embassy of Pakistan, told APP state news agency Pakistan’s competitive advantages in tariffs, labor costs, and raw materials could increase profit margins for businesses by up to 4.6 percent in fruit and vegetable processing. In the animal feed sector, particularly in the production of additives and supplements, profit margins could rise by as much as 3.6 percent.

“The Pakistani government is committed to creating a more business-friendly environment and has already addressed issues such as remittance challenges faced by Chinese companies,” Qadir said. 

Mian Saeed Ahmed Fareed from Legend International Pvt. Ltd., a Karachi-based seafood exporter to China, said he had signed an agreement with an importer in Tianjin to export aquatic products to China.

“After COVID-19, our volume of export to China has been going up to about 700-800 metric tons of seafood annually including cuttlefish, squid, ribbon fish, croaker, etc. In recent several years, the demand for seafood in this vast market has increasingly diversified, ” he said.

A representative from a fodder company based in Weifang, an agricultural hub of China, appreciated the potential in bilateral markets, technology transfer, and raw material trade.

“The low labor and machinery cost in Pakistan provides us with opportunities for cooperation,” he told APP.

Tang Yaping, Director of the Tea Industry International Department, said she would lead a delegation of Chinese tea companies to visit Pakistan for the establishment of joint processing plants and warehouses.

Zhu Qianqiu, President of the Cross-Border Trade Development Committee in China, said the body was pushing for the establishment of a zero-tariff zone in Pakistan for trade in bilateral commodities.