International flights would be flown from the Skardu airport, according to Federal Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan, in order to enhance tourism and trade in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Skardu airport, he claimed, would operate all-weather and overnight flights.
In an interview on Friday, he stated that under Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision, steps are being done to maximize tourism potential in the United Kingdom.
He stated that flights to Skardu have begun for the first time from Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, Sialkot, and Faisalabad. Skardu airport, according to the aviation ministry, has grown to be one of Pakistan’s busiest.
From next month, Mr. Sarwar said, a notification will be issued establishing Skardu airport as the international airport. The runway at the airport is being enlarged to accommodate wide-body aero plane landings, he said. Ghulam Sarwar said there was a plan in the works to enlarge the Gilgit airport, and that alternatives for building a new airport in Gilgit were being considered.
He added that a research was being carried out to build a bridge to allow heavy planes to land at the Gilgit airport.