PAA presents paper on reconstruction of Jinnah Airport’s runway

KARACHI: Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) presented a working paper on the reconstruction of Jinnah International Airport’s Runway 07L/25R at the Twenty-Fifth Meeting of the ICAO Asia Pacific Regional Aviation Safety Team (APRAST/25), held in Bangkok from June 22 to 26, 2026. According to the details, the forum drew aviation safety regulators and experts from across the Asia-Pacific region to compare practices and coordinate on regional safety standards. Pakistan’s delegation included Engr. Hafiz Zahid Ishaque, Project Director for Jinnah International Airport at PAA; Engr. Muneeb Ahmed Khan and Senior Deputy Director JIAP at PAA; and Ms. Mahrukh M. Hussain, Senior Deputy Director of the ICAO Cell. Ishaque delivered the paper, titled “Schedule-Optimized Runway Reconstruction with Safety Assurance under Live Aerodrome Operations, ” detailing how the runway project was carried out without halting airport operations, while staying within international safety compliance requirements. According to the presentation, the project was completed in its planned 18-month window with no delays, no claims, and no cost overruns. Roughly 60, 000 aircraft movements and close to 10 million passengers were handled during the construction period, with no reportable safety incidents recorded. The runway has since been certified and put into commercial service. The paper framed the project as a joint effort between PAA and PCAA across planning, regulatory approval, execution, and certification, and cited it as an applied case of ICAO Safety Management System principles during active airside construction. Representatives from the United States and AEROTHAI responded with praise for Pakistan’s safety assurance framework, pointing to its coordination across multiple stakeholders as a model with relevance beyond Pakistan’s own airports. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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