An Islamabad-bound Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight carrying Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was diverted to Lahore airport, causing inconvenience to hundreds of other passengers, according to a media report on Wednesday.
The flight PK842 was also carrying Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and a high-level delegation. All were coming back from their visit to Saudi Arabia.
On Monday, the PIA flight from Jeddah to Islamabad, carrying Sharif and his daughter Maryam back from their visit to Saudi Arabia, was diverted to Lahore airport, the Dawn newspaper reported quoting a PIA spokesperson.
The flight was carrying 393 passengers. On Monday, at 10:30 pm, they were supposed to land in Islamabad. However, the flight was diverted to Allama Iqbal International Airport and landed at 9:25 pm, said the report.
After offloading nearly 79 passengers, the flight finally took off for Islamabad and landed at the Islamabad International Airport at 11:17 pm (instead of 10:30 pm).
Ban on the red carpet?
Interestingly, recently, Prime Minister Sharif declared a ban on the red carpet at events in his favour. His announcement earned accolades for signalling a shift towards eliminating the VIP culture and promoting a culture of modesty within the realm of public service.