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Pakistani books Lahore to Karachi ticket, reaches via deportation from Saudi
A Pakistani man, who was supposed to fly from Lahore to Karachi, ended up in Jeddah after mistakenly boarding the wrong plane, sparking major concerns about airline procedures and airport security, reported Gulf News.
On July 8, Malik Shahzain Ahmed was travelling with Air Sial, a private carrier, when he boarded a flight at Lahore Airport.
However, he didn't realise that the plane was headed to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
Two hours into the flight, he noticed something was off when it became clear the plane was going international.
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'I asked myself, 'This plane doesn't seem to be landing soon.' That's when I realised I had boarded the wrong plane,' Ahmed said in a video statement released following the incident.
Shockingly, he had boarded without a passport—a basic requirement for such travel.
When he landed in Jeddah, Saudi immigration detained him due to the missing passport, but later deported him back to Lahore once the mix-up was sorted out.
To make matters worse, Ahmed claimed Air Sial refused to cover his travel to Karachi, insisting he buy a new ticket despite their mistake.
Pakistani authorities hold Air Sial accountable
The Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) confirmed the incident and held Air Sial responsible.
PAA spokesperson Saifullah told Gulf News that a report was sent to the Civil Aviation Authority, pushing for a hefty fine on the airline for the blunder.
How Ahmed slipped through immigration at Lahore without a passport remains unexplained, raising serious questions about security checks.
Critics are calling it a 'systemic failure.'
The PAA promised to tighten security and verification processes to avoid such incidents in the future. Many see this as a glaring example of negligence that could've led to bigger diplomatic or legal issues if Saudi authorities hadn't handled it smoothly.
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