airblue

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Not to be confused with Blue Air or jetBlue.

Airblue

IATA
PA

ICAO
ABQ

Callsign
AIRBLUE

Founded

2003

Commenced
operations

18 June 2004

Hubs

Jinnah International Airport

Focus cities

Allama Iqbal International

Airport
Benazir Bhutto International
Airport
Dubai International Airport

Frequent-flyer
program

Blue Miles

Airport lounge

Blue Lounge International[1]

Fleet size

Destinations

11

Headquarters

Islamabad Stock Exchange

Towers

Islamabad, Pakistan
Key people
Website

Shahid Khaqan Abbasi(CEO)

www.airblue.com

Islamabad Stock Exchange Towers, the Airblue headquarters in Islamabad

Airblue Limited (styled as airblue) is a private airline with its head office on the 12th floor of
the Islamabad Stock Exchange (ISE) Towers in Islamabad, Pakistan.[2] Airblue operates scheduled
flights operating 30 daily services linking four domestic
destinationsIslamabad, Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar with international services to Dubai, Abu
Dhabi, Sharjah and Muscat. Its main base isJinnah International Airport, Karachi.

Contents
[hide]

1 History
2 Destinations
o 2.1 Network expansion
3 Services
o 3.1 Cabin
o 3.2 eTicketing
o 3.3 Frequent flyer program
o 3.4 Lounges
o 3.5 Cost-cutting measures
o 3.6 Ground services
4 Cargo operations
5 Fleet
6 Incidents and accidents

7 See also
8 References
9 Further reading
10 External links

History[edit]
The airline was established in 2003 and started operations on 18 June 2004 with three leased Airbus
A320-200 aircraft servingKarachiLahore and KarachiIslamabad with three daily flights in each
direction.[3] The airline was inaugurated by Zafarullah Khan Jamali (the Prime Minister of Pakistan
then).
During the first year the airline became very popular,[4] which allowed the airline to compete directly
with the flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines and the two other private carriers, flying more than
400,000 passengers in the first year with a load factor of over 90%.[5] This allowed the airline to
expand into more cities in Pakistan including Peshawar, Quetta and Nawabshah.[3] On 14 August
2005 (Pakistan's 58th Independence Day) Airblue launched its first international flight from Karachi
to Dubai.[3] On June 4, 2007, Airblue launched its inaugural flight to Manchester using the Airbus
A321.[6] There were plans to launch flights from Lahore to London Stansted in 2014.[7]
Airblue changed its IATA code from ED to PA in June 2012, the new code originally belonged to the
defunct and once iconic carrier Pan American World Airways.
In 2011 they launched service to Istanbul using Sabiha Gokcen Airport, with full traffic rights to from
Pakistan and Manchester.
In June 2012, Airblue finalised an agreement to acquire one Airbus A320 and two leased Airbus
A340-300s for current and new international routes. It was also looking at various types of turboprop
aircraft for new domestic routes, this plan was eventually dropped. The A340s joined the fleet in
October 2012, enabling it to strengthen its Manchester route with nonstop flights as well as launch a
second UK destination Birmingham in September 2013, and connect both stations with Lahore. The
A340s later also flew to the Middle East, technical issues related to the aircraft eventually led to
them being phased out by January 2014, they were leased for a five year term.
UK operations also ended with Birmingham being dropped after just three months service and
Manchester ending in January 2014.

Destinations[edit]
Airblue serves the following destinations as of April 2014:[8]
Oman
Muscat - Muscat International Airport
Pakistan

Islamabad - Benazir Bhutto International Airport Focus City

Karachi - Jinnah International Airport Hub
Lahore - Allama Iqbal International Airport Focus City
Peshawar - Bacha Khan International Airport
Rahim Yar Khan - Shaikh Zayed International Airport
Skardu - Skardu Airport
Saudi Arabia

Jeddah - King Abdulaziz International Airport

Riyadh - King Khalid International Airport
United Arab Emirates

Abu Dhabi - Abu Dhabi International Airport

Dubai - Dubai International Airport
Sharjah - Sharjah International Airport

Airblue previously served Quetta, Nawabshah and Faisalabad,[9] whereas a chater service was
operated to Gwadar through JS Air.[10] International destinations included Istanbul in Turkey[11] as
well as Birmingham and Manchester in United Kingdom.[12][13]

Network expansion[edit]
Airblue intends to expand operations with additional aircraft to destinations in Europe, China, and the
Middle East[14] aiming to become a major player in Europe. They also plan to start a MumbaiKarachi air route. However, this would require the airline to get designated, a status which only PIA
(Pakistan International Airlines) enjoys currently. Under the bilateral civil aviation agreement, there
are slots for 12 flights a week between India and Pakistan, currently entirely used by PIA.[15]

Services[edit]
This section needs additional citations for verification. Please
help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March
2013)
Cabin[edit]
All aircraft have a 3-by-3 layout, with an all economy cabin[16] and have overhead video screens.[citation
needed]
Airblue formerly had a business class section, but dropped it[when?]due to exogenous economic
factors.[citation needed]

eTicketing[edit]

Karachi is the hub for most of Airblue's domestic operations

Airblue was the first airline in Pakistan to introduce e-ticketing, wireless check-in and self check-in
kiosk facilities. The airline also usesSabre, a ticket distribution system.[citation needed]

Frequent flyer program[edit]

The Airblue frequent flyer program is called Blue Miles. Passengers are able to initially start on the
base level where sign up is free. Once passengers earn enough miles, there are upgrades to the

Blue Card followed by the Platinum Card. In May 2009, the airline formed an alliance with Faysal
Bank Limited to offer CREDIT CARDS .[17]

Lounges[edit]
Airblue inaugurated its own premium lounge at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi in November
2008. It has since been closed[when?]. Named the Blue Lounge International, it was designed for
business class passengers, CREDIT CARD holders and privileged customers. The lounge offered
Internet facilities, cable television, newspapers and magazines, massage chairs and a snack bar. It
was located in the international terminal of the airport.[citation needed]

Cost-cutting measures[edit]
To deal with the fuel price hike worldwide, Airblue converted their fleet to all economy class[when?],
and all new aircraft will also be in a single-class configuration. They also ended full meal services
and replaced it with snacks on domestic flights[when?]. In 2006, Airblue did away with chinaware
crockery service for meals on most routes to cut costs and weight, replacing it with plastic as per
normal industry practice.[citation needed]

Ground services[edit]
Passengers may check-in 2 hours prior to flight departure at latest or as early as 48 hours prior to
flight departure. This may be done in person or at self-service kiosks. Currently self-service kiosks
are available at Jinnah International Airport and Allama Iqbal International Airport. Dnata handles
ground and passenger handling for the airline at all of the airports the airline operates from. Gate
Gourmet provides food and beverage services to the airline.[citation needed]

Cargo operations[edit]
Airblue have launched e-Cargo service to cater to air freight markets
of Pakistan, UAE and UK.[18] According to a press release, e-Cargo will broaden the base of cargo
and permit certified agents to book freight directly online opening the inventory through Web.

Fleet[edit]
As of April 2014 Airblue Fleet consists of following aircraft's with an average age of 8.9 years:[19]

Airblue Fleet
Aircraft

In Fleet Orders

Notes

Airbus A320-200

3 on lease, one ILFC two AWAS

Airbus A321-200

On lease from Windrose Airlines till May 2015 [20]

ATR 72-600

Lease Term Accepted From Quick Duck Airlines.

Total

Airblue own just one aircraft, an A320[21] reg. AP-EDA that was part of a self placed order for
fourteen in 2007, the remaining order was cancelled.[22]
Previously operated

4 Airbus A319-100[23]
2 Airbus A340-300[23]

Incidents and accidents[edit]

Airblue Flight 202: On July 28, 2010, an Airblue Airbus A321 crashed in the Margalla Hills near
the Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Islamabad while on a flight fromJinnah International
Airport in Karachi due to pilot error.[24]

See also[edit]
Islamabad portal
Aviation portal
Companies portal

List of airlines of Pakistan

References[edit]
1. Jump up^ Airblue launches Blue Lounge International
2. Jump up^ "Contacting Us." Airblue. Retrieved on 28 July 2010. "Airblue Limited
(Corporate Headquarters) 12th Floor, ISE Towers 55-B Jinnah Avenue Islamabad 111247-258."
3. ^ Jump up to:a b c Schmitz 2006, p. 57.
4. Jump up^ "Pakistans popular private airline AirBlue to begin Flights to UK in May"
Pakistan Times, Printed Jan 28, 2007
5. Jump up^ Schmitz 2006, p. 58.
6. Jump up^ AirBlue Begins Pakistan-UK Flights from June 1
7. Jump up^ Stansted boss sets out vision for two runways
8. Jump up^ Airblue schedule
9. Jump up^ Former domestic route map
10. Jump up^ Airblue/JS Air Gwadar service
11. Jump up^ Airbue launch Istanbul
12. Jump up^ Air Blue suspends Birmingham to Pakistan flights
13. Jump up^ Air Blue Manchester suspension news
14. Jump up^ to Double its fleet
15. Jump up^ http://www.airblue.com/Corp/061031_dnaindia.htm
16. Jump up^ Economy class section of Airblue A320s
17. Jump up^ Promotional Campaign Launched
18. Jump up^ Airblue e-Cargo
19. Jump up^ http://www.ch-aviation.ch/portal/airline/AIB
20. Jump up^ [1]
21. Jump up^ Airbus orders and deliveries May 2011
22. Jump up^ Air Blue expands fleet
23. ^ Jump up to:a b [2]
24. Jump up^ "ASN Aircraft accident Airbus A321-231 AP-BJB Islamabad-Benazir Bhutto
International Airport (ISB)". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 2 March2013.

Schmitz, Sebastian. "airblue: A New High Flyer from Pakistan". Air International, January 2006,
Vol 70 No 1. pp. 5658. ISSN 0306-5634.

Further reading[edit]

Airblue
AirBlue to start flights to UK
Airblue Introduce Self Check-in System
Airblue celebrates one millionth passenger
Airblue's Fleet Expansion
ILFC News Release
Airblue/Airbus Deal Press Release
Airblue Landing in Sharja
Airblue Flights to Lahore