PIA to add Dreamliners on UK routes from November

PIA will add two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners to its routes between Pakistan and the UK from November, under a leasing deal with Norse Atlantic Airways.

The Norwegian carrier announced the agreement on Friday. Under the arrangement, known as ACMI, Norse supplies the aircraft along with crews, maintenance and insurance. PIA, in turn, pays a fee. Flights should start at the beginning of November and link several cities in the two countries.

What the deal means for PIA

PIA chief executive Amir Hayat said the UK is a key destination for the airline. “UK is an important market for PIA,” he said. The deal, he added, would bring much-needed extra seats and give travellers more choice on these routes.

Hayat also noted strong demand for direct travel between the two countries. According to him, these will be the first Dreamliners flying for a Pakistani airline, and he hoped they would offer passengers a premium journey.

The agreement comes as PIA rebuilds its international network. The airline only recently returned to the UK market after a five-year ban imposed by EU safety regulators, one report noted. A large Pakistani community lives in the UK, which keeps demand high on these flights. Leasing also lets PIA add capacity quickly without having to buy new aircraft.

Norse chief executive Eivind Roald said the deal would give that community more options for travel. “We see this as the start of a strategic partnership between the two companies,” he said.

Why Norse Atlantic needs the contract

For Norse, the contract arrives at a difficult time. The struggling low-cost airline, based in Norway, has been trying to shore up its finances as jet fuel costs soar. As a result, it has cut back on its own budget flights across the Atlantic. Instead, it now leases out planes and crews.

The PIA agreement also lets Norse keep a key leasing contract running. In July, IndiGo, the largest airline in India, said it would end a similar arrangement covering six Dreamliners. Those aircraft return to Norse by October 31, and two of them can now move to PIA.

Roald said charter and leasing deals form a central part of the business model of the company. In his view, deals of this kind smooth out cash flow and cushion the carrier when demand or fuel costs swing. He added that Norse had told investors it would gradually move aircraft into new leasing work. The PIA deal, he said, delivers on that promise.

Its fleet consists of 12 Dreamliners of the Boeing 787 family. Norse calls its model Airline on Demand, under which it moves those jets between its own scheduled routes, tailored charters and leasing work. That flexibility, the company says, lets it chase new markets, adjust to seasonal shifts and earn more from each aircraft. It said it is in talks with other international airlines about further leasing contracts. Separately, Norse put itself up for a potential sale or merger in July.

For PIA passengers, the deal means bigger, newer aircraft on one of the busiest routes for the airline, starting next month.