Commercial Flights between Bangladesh and Pakistan Resume After 14 Years

JAKARTA - Direct commercial flights between Bangladesh and Pakistan will resume on January 29 amid the thawing of diplomatic ties, restoring an air route that has been suspended for more than a decade.

Bangladesh's national airline, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, confirmed the resumption of its route between Dhaka and Karachi on Thursday, marking the resumption of regular passenger services for the first time since 2012.

The airline said the service will operate twice a week, increasing a corridor used by business travelers, medical passengers and families visiting relatives, who currently require an indirect journey through centers in the Gulf including Dubai and Doha, as reported by The National on January 8.

In a statement, the airline said the move would significantly increase connectivity and support trade and tourism.

The relaunch restores a route that once connected West and East Pakistan, the two wings of the same state, before the 1971 war, offering new links across the evolving South Asian diplomatic landscape.

The decision follows months of improved relations that accelerated after Bangladesh's 2024 political turmoil, when a student-led uprising ended the 15-year rule of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina.

Relations between Dhaka and New Delhi, India, cooled after Hasina's overthrow, but Islamabad is trying to re-establish communication channels with the interim government of Bangladesh led by chief adviser Muhammad Yunus.

Regional trade activities have also been revived. Cargo shipments between Karachi and Chittagong, Bangladesh's busiest port, resumed in November 2024, a milestone described by officials from both countries as a precursor to broader economic cooperation.

Since then, bilateral trade volumes have increased, supported by increased cross-border cultural exchanges and medical travel, including Bangladeshi patients seeking specialist care in Pakistan.