KARACHI: The New Gwadar International Airport, a key project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has been finally operationalised after receiving its inaugural flight on Monday (today).Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight PK-503 landed at 11:14am at the new airport and was welcomed by Balochistan Governor Sheikh Jaffar Khan Mandokhail, Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, Aviation Minister Khawaja Asif and other officials.
The aircraft, used for the airport’s first flight, was an ATR which also received a water salute upon landing.The flight’s departure was slated for 9:14am but the plane eventually left for Gwadar from Karachi at 10am following a 46-minute delay.
The New Gwadar International Airport has replaced the old airport on flight tracking platforms, with its location now tagged on flight radar.Spread across 4,300 acres, the airport is Pakistan’s largest in terms of area. Located 26 kilometres from Gwadar city in the Gurandani area, the airport features a single runway measuring 3,658 metres in length and 75 metres in width.
The runway is capable of accommodating large aircraft such as the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747.
Constructed at a cost of approximately Rs50 billion, the airport’s symbolic inauguration was carried out by former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on October 14, 2024.
However, regular flight operations are set to commence today.
