From "Lahore International Airport" to "Allama Iqbal International Airport" and to "Future"

Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore

Allama Iqbal International Airport is situated in Lahore which is the provincial capital of Punjab. The elevation of this airport is 698 ft. covering the land area of 1364 acres. 

History

After the independence, Walton Aerodrome was the only facility available in Lahore and the surrounding areas until Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) acquired Boeing 707-320C in 1960. As the Walton Aerodrome was not able to handle this aircraft so the authorities decided to build a new airport. With this catalyst in place, Lahore International Airport was developed and opened in 1962 with the capacity of handling wide-body aircrafts like Boeing 747. Its terminal building, which later converted into Hajj Terminal has the area of 14160 sq. ft. with 6 check-in counters.   

Recent Developments     

After around four decades, the terminal capacity at this airport reached to the neck so a new terminal was developed and opened in 2003 with the capacity of handling 6 million passengers yearly. With this inauguration, it was renamed as Allama Iqbal International Airport - after the name of the national poet. 

The old terminal was initially handed over to Pakistan Military which was later reclaimed by the Government and converted into Hajj Terminal. This terminal now becomes operational for only 30 days and is used for departing Hajj flights. For the rest of the year, it is used for diplomates, special flights and staff training of Airport Security Force (ASF). 

Hence, the airport currently has three terminals naming Hajj Terminal, Cargo Terminal and Allama Iqbal Terminal. Moreover, the airport currently has two parallel runways (36R/18L, 36L/18R) and 22 aircraft parking spaces including seven passenger bridges. 

Old Terminal, Now Hajj Terminal 

Future Expansion

Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) recently conceived the expansion plan for this project which will increase the number of boarding gates from seven to seventeen, passenger handling capacity from six to 20 millions and car parking from single to multi-level capable to accommodate around 4500 vehicles. 

The existing design of the terminal building can be linked back to Mughal architecture while the proposed one was designed by GilBartolomé Architects and inspired by the national flower as its four arms resemble with the four petals of Jasmine. Other companies that are involved in the construction work are "TYSPA International" from Spain, "China Construction Third Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd." from China and "Asian Consulting Engineers Pvt. Ltd." from Pakistan. 

Proposed New Design

With the budget of Rs.42 billons, the expansion which was started in 2016 consisted of three phases i.e., access roads, car parking and terminal building. First two phases are almost complete with reported cost of Rs.7 billons while the third one is still ahead. 

Project in Transition

Sialkot International Airport - A First of Its Kind in the Region

This is a Brief about Sialkot International Airport Ltd. (SIAL)

The airport is actually located in Sambrial which is 16km in the west of the main district of Sialkot, Pakistan. It is more commonly known as the first and perhaps the only privately owned commercial airport developed on self-help basis not just in Pakistan but in the entire South East Asia. This initiative was taken by the 223 members of the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industries (SCCI) and currently 365 directors are the part of the board of Sialkot International Airport Ltd. (SIAL). 

Background

In February 2001, President of Pakistan approved this project in principal on build, operate and owned basis. After that, 1034 acres of land was acquired and construction work was started in 2003. With the cost of about 4 billion rupees, the project was completed and the airport started its international and domestic operations in November 2007. Qatar Airways started its cargo operations in 2008 as initially the international airlines were allowed only to operate cargo flights from this airport. Later in 2013, authorities allowed these airlines to operate passenger operations as well when in January, the same year, airarabia started its passenger flights. 

Need of This Airport

The need of this airport is linked to three industrial cities of Pakistan i.e., Sialkot, Gujrat and Gujranwala. In local business settings, this is also know as "Export Triangle" or "Golden Triangle". As many readers may know, Sialkot is famous for its sports goods and surgical equipment while Gujarat and Gujranwala are famous for its pottery, electric appliances, textile, cutlery and rice production etc.. Previously, the exporters had to use Sambrial Dry Port, from where the goods used to transfer to Islamabad International Airport or Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore to access the international markets. This was, of course, costly and time consuming. So the exporters of this "Triangle" requested the government to build an airport in the locality to support their export but the government did not have financial capacity for this project at that time. So the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industries decided to commence this mega project by itself.

Facilities

The airport has the basic systems installed for passenger processing such as Common User Terminal Equipment (CUTE), Baggage Reconciliation System and Flight Information Display System. Moreover, it is a single runway airport with  3600m long runway that comes under ICAO category E4 - (ICAO is International Civil Aviation Organization). Category E4 runways are usually equipped to handle aircrafts like Airbus 340, 330 and Boeing 747, 777. Its apron has the current capacity of handling seven nose-in parking of widebody aircraft at a time but it has only two boarding-bridges. 

Its passenger terminal is 10,000 sq. m. building with all basic amenities for passengers, airlines and authorities whereas the cargo complex is spread about 2000 sq. m. of the airport land. Other facilities include banks, ATM, Money Exchangers, Rental Cars, Restaurants, Cafes and CIP lounge for business class passengers (the economy class passengers may also avail CIP lounge which may cost them equivalent to around $10). 

Airlines

Poplar destinations from this airport are Muscat, Dammam, Dubai, Sharja, Riyadh, Doha and Karachi while the major airlines that are currently operating at this airport are:

• Pakistan International Airlines (PIA)
• Airsial
• Fly Dubai
• Gulf Air
• Qatar Airways
• Airarabia
• Emirates

A Brief about "History and Present" of Multan International Airport

Previously known as Muhammad Bin Qasim International Airport, Multan International Airport is owned and operated by Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) and it is located in west of Multan which is about 4km away from the main city. 

It is situated at an elevation of 403ft i.e., 122.8m and is one of the largest and also the busiest airport in South Punjab. The airport offers flights to both domestic and international destinations. Whereas the popular international flights from this airport are to the Middle Eastern Countries. 

History

The history of Multan airport can be traced back to the British era when, during early 1900s, the Royal Air Force used this open space to fly in and out of the region mostly for aircraft that were able to land at grass or on rough surfaces as the runway was not paved then. Even today, Pakistan army aviation base is situated adjacent to the runway and opposite to the terminal building. In 1930s, Imperial Airways used to run its operations from this airport and after the independence of Pakistan, Multan Flying Club was established and later PIA started its operations from here. Due to this increase in aviation activity, runway, taxiways and aircraft parking areas are paved. 

Transition

Let's skip ahead till first decade of 21st century when PCAA proposed to upgrade the runway to handle Boeing 747. Then the decision to expand the terminal building and the airside was made with the estimated budget of 4.5 billion rupees. The first phase of this project i.e., the expansion of runway, taxiway and apron was completed but, in the second phase, instead of expanding the existing terminal (which was previously planned), Civil Aviation Authority decided to construct a whole new state of the art terminal building. So the new airport was finally inaugurated in 2010.  

Present

The new terminal is a single-structured building with separate arrival and departure halls. Alongside the terminal building, one can see the four jet bridges which can accommodate two wide-body and four narrow-body aircrafts.  Inside the new terminal building, the main concourse covers the area of 4,200 sq. ft. along with a CIP lounge which comprises of 2400 sq. ft.. CIP lounge is dedicated to mainly business class passengers. Currently, the airport has a parking space of 130 vehicles which includes both short and long-term parking options. 25 spaces are also reserved for VIP car parking. 

The airport has a single runway with 18/36 orientation. While on the subject, it may be interesting to know that the runways are usually useable for departure and landing from both ends depending upon the wind direction. So here, runway orientation - 18/36 means 180 degree magnetic heading at one end of the runway and 360 degrees heading on the other. The length of this runway is 3,205m which is capable of handling large aircrafts like Boeing 777 or 747 and Airbus 340.  It is completely equipped with an airfield lighting system with an addition of Instrument Landing System (ILS). The category of ILS at this airport is still CAT-I that creates issue of long delays and diversions as this system does not support landing operations in low visibility conditions like fog. The latest category of ILS in the world is CAT-III-C. 

There is also a taxiway that runs parallel to this runway. Taxiways can be considered as streets so that the aircrafts can move between the runway, aircraft parking area and other components of the airfield of an airport. Beside the passenger terminal, there is an Air Cargo Complex that has the current yearly handling capacity of 10,000 metric tons with the plan to increase this to 30,000 metric tons. 

Airlines

Presently, following airlines have their presence at Multan International Airport. Among these airlines, PIA is the only carrier to operate both domestic and international flights. Rest of them are operating only international flights.

1. Pakistan International Airline (PIA) 
2. Fly Dubai
3. Airblue
4. Airarabia
5. Salam Air
6. Saudi Airlines
7. Gulf Air

Story of Rush Lake Trek - In the Heart of Nagar

From Hopar to the highest alpine lake of Pakistan and 25th on the list of world’s highest lakes - Rush Lake, this trek offers adventure with diversity.

After a steep descent Hopar Valley, you will face Hopar Glacier welcoming you by the natural air conditioning as literately it is cold at one point and soothes you with the gentle warm air at another. All of this with the background sound of cracks beneath you and with the view of continuous land sliding on the horizon.

Now there is a patch of barren land between Hopar and Barpu Glaciers. You cross this land with colorful companions - lizards and reach the first wall of Barpu Glacier where you see the glacier turning into a river and you walk on the soft ridge. Refill your bottles from mineral water provided by glacier.

You have reached the valley which has mountains on one side and glacier’s wall on the other. Your companions (lizards) have joined you again here. You walk around rocks. At one point it looks like the graveyard of rocks. You finally reach the jungle and set a camp at Barichukor beside the sweet sound of running water (probably coming from Spantik Glacier).

Spend a night there, regain your energy and look forward to another challenge - steep hike of Barichukor. It will test you and you may question your decision. But you will reach the top and find a dozen peaks of Karakoram standing beside you playing hide and seek with clouds. As you reach the top, you will feel as if you have earned the right to sit among these giants (mountains) i.e., Hopar, Barkpu, Kappel and many more.

You cross the vast meadows and can chat a little with mountain yaks. Then comes another somehow steep rocky hike and guess what! Still you wont see the lake. But you will get your prize soon. Just have a walk in another meadow for around 15 minute and here it comes - at the height of 4,694 meters, the highest lake of Pakistan, Rush Lake.

Observation: September 2019

A Review about Yasir Broast - Defence Road Branch

Not many restaurants provide consistency in their services, taste, hygiene and ambience. The focus here is on "consistency". Services do not need to be the top notch, taste does not have to be matchless for the entire menu, hygiene cannot be entirely 100% all the time and ambience can always have a room for improvement. So consider the aforesaid and read on.   

This review is about one of the branches of Yasir Braost, situated in Valencia Town, on Defence Road, Lahore. So it does not mean that this evaluation can be applied equally for every branch of this restaurant chain. By the way, according to Oxford Dictionary, "Broast" is a type of food cooked with the combination of "broiling" and "roasting". It may also interest few readers that "Broasting" is a cooking technique which was started in 1954 by L. A. M. Phelan. He was an American inventor and a businessman who found a way to cook chicken more quickly by combining deep fryer and pressure cooker.

Without digging further deep into the technicalities, let's move forward by highlighting few aspects of this restaurant.

• The service starts from the parking where they provide free valet parking (although they staff may expect a tip from you). You will also be greeted at the door. 

• They have two floors with indoor seating and an outdoor roof top arrangement. Their roof top usually seem to be the first choice of their customers. It is perhaps the main attraction of this restaurant. With dim-warm-lights and under the clear skies, it makes you feel calm and relax. 

• There is a bar as well on the ground floor. 

• The temperature inside is maintained well along with the cleanliness of the entire restaurant (at least on the customer-facing side). 

• Most of the time, their waiters are quick in attending you for taking your order (sometimes too quick perhaps). They take orders on a tablet which is a bit fancy (positively). 

• Their prices are also reasonable according to the ambience and services they provide. (Seriously, if the restaurant's name had not been "Yasir Broast", many middle class couples would have celebrated their wedding anniversaries and birthdays there.)  

• Their order-ready time is reasonable as well. It is enough to give you time to take selfies and to put "check-in" on facebook. The order usually reaches just before you runout of topics to discuss on the table.    

• Their grilled fish is good but it is not available in summer (as the people of this province tends to eat fish only in winters). Here it is important to mention that the "Broast" is not the only dish they serve at "Yasir Broast". Their menu comprises of multiple pages with many dishes categorized into Soups, Traditional Cuisine, BBQ, Burgers, Rice, Deserts, Drinks and more. They also have option for mutton and chicken. The taste and the quantity for all the items are reasonably good when compared to their prices. They fill the appetite of almost every member of the family according to his/her liking. Well, still some kids may like to eat pizza which they don't have in their menu right now.   

• Now, you have finished eating and need to wash hands. This area may need improvement or may be the customers need to be a little more sensible while using wash basin and other amenities in there.  

• Lastly, you will not receive any slip for the bill as it is on "the tablet". Well, you should try to ask for the receipt.   

It is necessary to say that usually the customer reviews about a particular restaurant are based on just a single visit. This was not the case here. There were number of visits on different occasions and with family, friends and kids before this conclusion was reached. Let's hope for the continuity and further improvement of such taste and services by this restaurant.  

A Brief About Islamabad International Airport

This article provides a brief information about the following three aspects:

• The need of Islamabad International Airport
• The contracts involved in this project
• Evaluation of its success

Since the independence of the country, a section of Chaklala Airbase has been the only facility present for commercial air travelers living in Islamabad, Rawalpindi and surrounding regions. Surely, with the passage of time, this facility has not been enough to cater the increasing demand. So, several structural modifications were made to this airport to facilitate the increasing number of domestic and international flights. Finally, the airport reached to its full capacity which caused operational problems and frequent flight delays due to airside, terminal and airspace congestion in and around the airport. So the authorities decided to build a new airport to cater present and future air travel demand. 

Islamabad International Airport was a project conceived by Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan (PCAA) in 1984. Site selection for this airport was done in March 2005 and the contract was signed with Louis Berger Group and Engineering Consultants International (Private) Limited (ECIL) on January 06, 2006 for project management services. Feasibility for this mega project was done in June 2006 by Aéroports de Paris Ingenierie (ADPi) and National Engineering Services Pakistan (NESPAK) while the master plan for the airport was prepared and submitted by the Berger Group in September 2006. 

The project was divided into 10 packages starting from package 0 to package 10 and few sub packages in between. Package - 0 i.e., site preparation package was awarded on December 19, 2006. ADPi and NESPAK were given the contract for infrastructure design on March 24, 2007 and the contract of terminal building design was given to CPG Consultants on the same day. After few years, a new contract was signed, according to which Mott MacDonald Group and MM Pakistan were hired to provide project management services in June 2015 as the contract of Berger Group had expired in May 2014. 

The foundation stone for this mega project was laid on April 07, 2007 and was planned to be completed in year 2010. Estimated cost for this project was Rs.37 billion but was completed in Rs105 billion. With eight years of delay and huge budget overrun, it was finally inaugurated on May 1, 2018 and commenced commercial operations on May 3, 2018.

So, it does not seem to be a successful project at least not on the basis of two conventional project goals i.e., time and cost. Traditionally, project success is measured based on the dimension of “meeting conventional project goals” i.e., time, cost and specifications.