Serene Air has closed its operations across Pakistan after failing to resume its flight services. According to reports, the airline has shut its offices at Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore as well as airports in Islamabad, Karachi, Faisalabad and Multan.
The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) has also taken back the airline’s airport offices. The authority recovered millions of rupees in pending landing, take-off, parking and office rental charges from the security deposit paid by the airline.
According to the reports, the airline’s offices in Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad have also been closed. After the offices were vacated, they will be handed over to other airlines. Serene Air management has also been asked to collect its belongings from the offices as soon as possible.
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Airline unable to resume flights
Serene Air had stopped its operations and could not restart its flight services. The airline management said it had cleared its dues with government institutions, the CAA, tax authorities and landlords.
It said that the airline had also tried to restart its operations but could not do so due to unavoidable reasons. According to the management, the airline did not have enough aircraft to resume its services. Two of its aircraft had developed technical problems and could not be repaired on time.
The airport authority had also provided a grace period and made efforts to help the airline restart its operations. However, Serene Air could neither repair its damaged aircraft nor arrange new planes to replace them.
Reports also said that hundreds of employees, including pilots, have not received their salaries for several months.
New Airline launches operations
Another new airline, Riyadh Air, recently officially launched its operations in Pakistan, with its inaugural flight from Riyadh arriving at Islamabad International Airport on Friday evening with passengers.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, the Saudi ambassador highlighted the significance of the new service in further strengthening the longstanding ties and air connectivity between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.