KARACHI AIRPORT review : 27 June 2008 : by O Ahsan

Customer Rating : 4/5

I find Karachi airport actually quite good - only blemish (as most reports point out) is immigration particularly when a number of flights land close together. Jinnah international is is not really geared for many flights. There is a heavy security presence but staff are polite and professional. Check in is easy particularly in business. Distances to walk are manageable and the duty free not bad.

Karachi Airport by O Ahsan

27 June 2008   Customer Rating :

I find Karachi airport actually quite good - only blemish (as most reports point out) is immigration particularly when a number of flights land close together. Jinnah international is is not really geared for many flights. There is a heavy security presence but staff are polite and professional. Check in is easy particularly in business. Distances to walk are manageable and the duty free not bad.

Karachi Airport by Kurt Mueller

1 July 2006   Customer Rating : n/a

Arrived on 23 June 2006 by EK at 4.30 a.m. All passport desks were manned, but the number of arriving flights was such that all booths had a queue of some 50+ people lining up. What made things worse was the total absence of any semblance of organisation. There are separate and clearly marked channels for foreign and Pakistani passports, respectively, but clearly, this day had been declared "zoo day". Finally got to the baggage hall after 1h 30 min, where the chaotic scenes just kept coming. The luggage from my flight was either on the stopped belt, beside the belt or had dropped behind it. My bag with a priority label was found underneath some other stuff on the floor. When approached about this mess, the EK ground staff reacted with great amusement. What are passengers paying for nowadays in terms of air fares and - in the case of KHI airport - a Rs 700 "service" charge?

Karachi Airport by Moyene Najmi

27 January 2006

Karachi airport is pretty run-down from the last few years that I have been visiting the place both for international and domestic travel. While the terminal building was originally inaugrated around 1993 and constructed by a french company, its a basic airport. There is a duty free, a shopping arcade for Pakistani handicrafts and a McDonalds Kiosk for those who just have to have a Big Mac. However, while the airport may be maintained to some extent, its not neccesary that everythng will be spank. Lightning can be an "occasional" issue and the local authorities have put in these hideous looking black glass enclosures everywhere which are not coherent with the original airport design. A welcome addition is the Citigroup ATM kiosk right there at International Arrivals which adds a colourful touch to a rather mundane airport. The best part is that the terminal has lots of space for developing passenger facilities including new restaurants, bookshops and coffee shops etc. Heck, on the street level, Pakistan has every conceivable food franchise including McDonalds, Pizza Hut, KFC, Costa Coffee and Papa Johns. The airport has none other than a McDonalds kiosk which is not open 24 hours. The duty free also needs a brush up as the current operator is not allowed to sell alcohol. All in all, the airport is modern and the size of the terminal manageable unlike other asian and western airports which overwhelm passengers with their long walks and distant parking lots. Also, the huge underground parking which has not ever been opened since the airport came into existence in 1993 needs to be opened up.... whats the use of having it in the first place!

Karachi Airport by Asif Aslam

15 November 2004

Karachi airport is modern. It is not very well designed to handle multiple flight arrival or departure. Specially immigration counter is the bottle neck in the whole process. Duty free can always be improved. Given Karachi is one of the largest cities in Pakistan. I would expect a world class airport. Immigration is the first impression a visitor gets about a country - if they can help improve it with more efficient and courteous staff, it will help improve image of the country.

Karachi Airport by Asad Ali

18 May  2004

Karachi Airport is well designed and everything goes in well manner. The civil aviation staff are cooperative with a separate visible counter made for any kind of travel related emergency. The only thing which irritated me when i visited the airport in 2003 was the behaviour of porters and taxi drivers outside the airport. They used to rushed around you. But in recent visit in 2004 it made me feel good and that a separate counter has been made to assigned porters in serial. Also 2 counters of Taxis has been made. One is of the local taxi drivers and other is of the exellent conditioned private taxis. Same like in the porter case, you will be given a taxi on the booking on their counters.

Karachi Airport by K Müller

2 May  2004

On the positive side, this is a well laid-out airport with surprisingly few hassles in the check-in area (domestic or international). Baggage is brought onto the carousels quite fast, too. The main gripe is with immigration - I lined up for more than one hour when arriving on EK at 4.30 am on 20 April. When departing with the same airline a week later and passing immigration at around 4.45 am, I was surprised at how surly the only passport controller available was - unable or unwilling to stretch her arms to the counter to pick up my passport (she waited for me to stretch across and place it into her hand). Her colleagues (six of them) were congregating at another desk and turned away passengers who wanted to use that particular lane as the passport guys were "taking their break". Goes to show that a nice building is not enough.

Karachi Airport by Madni Mansoor

4 April  2004

The Quaid-e-Azam International Terminal is a beautifully designed airport. It is well designed from the inner side of building. A stranger can also pass its time by enjoying its surrounds. Everything is efficient. It is a well restricted airport from any illegal persons. The staff is friendly and cooperative.

Karachi Airport by J Molin

12 February 2004

Karachi airport is a very nice with a modern architecture and it is easy to use. Although my first experience of arriving there was quite shocking. The staff at the airport is friendly and has good English skills but there are so many armed guards. The first thing I saw after leaving the aircraft and entering the terminal building via the passenger bridge was three guards with machine guns more or less ready to shoot you at any time. I appreciate the security but for me being quite young at that time thought it was scary. It is not the kind of persons you stop and have a chat with. Otherwise I have a very positive image of the airport. Many security checks but everything works very efficiently including check-in, boarding and baggage handling. There was also a duty-free shop in the transit hall with "international prices".

Karachi Airport by Karl Uebanks

11 September 2003

KHI was built about 6-7 years ago, and is still a clean, well run and manageable airport. Arriving passengers are quickly processed through immigration, and there is a separate line for foreigners, which is quite short. Baggage arrives quickly, and trolleys actually work. All bags are x-rayed and then passengers can leave the airport. Since no one but employees and ticketed passengers are allowed inside the terminal, the breezeway outside is where the Asian experience truly begins. Touts, taxi drivers, and a myriad of people with no discernible purpose mill about. Hopefully you have a hotel meet-and-greet and you can leave quite easily. For departing passengers, once you enter the terminal, things are quite civilized, as only passengers are allowed inside. All bags are x-rayed and there are several additional security screenings. Check-in is usually quick, although outbound immigration queues can be longish. There are shops selling duty free, but I would suspect that prices are fairly inflated. CIP lounges are sub-standard, with limited food and beverage selections. Without fail, staff are polite and helpful. Even security personnel, though armed to the teeth, are professional and courteous. Bathrooms are spotless and each has a fulltime attendee present. There are even free Internet kiosks around the departure terminal. The airport design is nice, with Islamic touches, and copious amounts of marble.

Karachi Airport by Sadiq Hassan

22 June 2003

Karachi airport has the the things that actually matter in an airport, you can check in 25mins before your flight and your bags will definItely be on the flight. Plus on most airlines they wrap your bags for free (in the US it is around $3). The main reason Karachi airport is so good, is that it is small and doesn't have too much traffic, so everything runs smoothly. The only things is the immigration lines are very long and generally take about 30-45mins because of a lack of them. (Normally 1 desk is open).

Karachi Airport by Steve Dale

19 May 2003

New Quaid-e-Azam Terminal is spacious and beautifully designed. Plenty of shops and a couple of restaurants, and you are able to board your flight by covered walkway. I remember the old airport which resembled a motley collection of old huts and you had to go by bus from the building to the aircraft.





 

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