KARACHI: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is facing mounting criticism after flight PK-242 from Dammam to Karachi landed nearly 21 hours behind schedule, leaving approximately 170 passengers stranded in deteriorating conditions at Saudi airports without adequate accommodation or clear communication.
The flight, originally scheduled to touch down at Jinnah International Airport at 11:40 PM on Saturday, became a textbook case of cascading operational failures for what began as a weather-related diversion spiraled into a prolonged nightmare for travelers, including children and elderly passengers who were forced to spend the night sleeping on airport floors.
According to PIA officials and passenger accounts, the aircraft was first diverted to Al Qassim Airport due to severe weather conditions, where it remained grounded for approximately four hours before being rerouted back to Dammam .
The human toll of the delay became apparent as passengers cleared immigration only to find themselves trapped in airport lounges with nowhere to go. Sources indicate that airline staff were unable to provide facilities meeting aviation regulations due to the repeated schedule changes and ultimate cancellation .
At around 3:00 AM, exhausted travelers were finally informed that their flight had been cancelled—hours after they had already endured significant waiting time. Many spent the night in makeshift conditions, sitting on chairs or lying on the floor, with families struggling to care for young children and elderly relatives in the sterile airport environment .
PIA spokespersons attempted to explain the extended delay by citing crew duty time limitations. After the initial diversion and extended working hours, flight crew were required to take a mandatory 12-hour rest period before they could legally operate the aircraft again .
While safety regulations governing crew fatigue are internationally recognized standards, passengers questioned why contingency plans—including replacement crew positioning or alternative accommodation arrangements—were not activated to mitigate the impact.
The flight eventually departed Dammam around 7:00 PM on Saturday evening—after multiple schedule revisions—and finally reached Karachi at 8:45 PM, concluding an ordeal that had stretched across two days and tested the patience of every traveler on board .
