When is the ground breaking ceremony going to take place. Any pictures for the proposed project. Someone wrote in THE NEWS it was going to be named as FATIMA JINNAH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT?

Mod Edit:

Benazir Bhutto (New Islamabad) International Airport, Islamabad, Pakistan

Key Data:
Order Year 2005
Project Type New greenfield airport
Location Islamabad, Pakistan
Estimated Investment $400m, PKR37bn
Completion 2011–2012

Key Players:
Sponsor
PCAA, Prime Minister's office

Designers and Contractors
ADPI (Aéroports de Paris ingénierie)
Acorp
Mushtaq and Bilal Mahboob Associates
CPG Corporation
National Engineering Services Pakistan (pvt) Ltd
Louis Berger Group
ECIL (Engineering Consultants International Ltd)
Lagan Construction
Husnain Co

Financing
PCAA, build operate transfer (BOT) basis

Traffic:
Passengers Nine million a year

Source: http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/

http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/images/1-benazir-bhutto.jpg

http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/images/2-benazir-bhutto.jpg

http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/images/3-benazir-bhutto.jpg

http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/images/4-benazir-bhutto.jpg

Source: http://www.airport-technology.com/projects/benazir-bhutto/

Sir Syed Ahmed Airport would have been a much better choice for the name.

no Fatima Jinnah is fine she deserves some credit!

Fatima Jinnah is fine aslong as people dont get confused with Jinnah International (Karachi)

Would'nt 'Islamabad International Airport' be fine?

how about Abdul Qadeer International Airport

So when the heck is the ground breaking???? And are there any new renderings?

how about Abdul Qadeer International Airport
NO HE IS A ENEMY OF THE STATE!

without Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan we wouldn't been able to produce any nuclear weapons we are saved becuase of him. because of him we are one of eight nuclear nations

that not true the chinese would have armed us either way

without Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan we wouldn't been able to produce any nuclear weapons we are saved becuase of him. because of him we are one of eight nuclear nations

If he wouldnt have transferred Nuclear Tech., he would still be a "Hero" to Pakistanis.

I think Sir Syed's contribution to our muslim subcontinental nation was much more than that of Fatima Jinnah's. He led the way for the muslims during the days of the british rule and reconciled us with the government after the war of Independence had left us vary of the raj. If he hadnt been there, we might have still be lurking wayy far behind.
Fatima Jinnah may have worked for women and provided moral support to the new Pakistan and to Quaid-e-Azam Mr. Jinnah, but I think that the impact of what Sir Syed did was far greater.

Well don't get excited you people. I just read in the newspaper in which the new Defence Secretary has been quoted as saying that not enough funds are there to carry out such a project. Although the PM very keen to start it right away. It also said that ground breaking ceremony was expected in the first week of April but it may be delayed now.
What do u think about naming the airport as AYUB KHAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT or LIAQUAT ALI KHAN INTERNATIONAL or may be KING FAISAL INTERNATIONAL.

King Faisal??? what the heck? is he donating massive funds for this project or what to deserve that naming after him?

Well we have named many things after him:
King Faisal Mosque, Faisalabad etc.
I have heard he provided initial funding for our nuke programme?

For Gods sake!

King Faisal? Lets just name it "Islamabad International" for now ......

Well I think "ISLAMABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT" IS THE BEST NAME.
But the most important issue here is not the name of the airport, is the project ever going to be started? I am hearing of it since 1999 and not a single step has been taken since then?(This is what I think)

we arent arabs!

Hey I heard this news recently that it has probably gotten shelved because of lack of funds with the army. Anybody else heard this? I m sorry I cant confirm cause I lost the source of the news.

I have searched for any such news swerveut, i cant seem to find anything ... nor can i find any update on the project for that matter. I'll try and look something up ... I certainly hope they have not shelved this ... Islamabad badly needs this airport !!

its not shelved we are just having problems because of the damned F-16's and Erieye awacs or the E-2 whatever they pick. These buys are well off the goverments 3 billion budget for arms

ISLAMABAD, 6 APRIL: President General Pervez Musharraf will perform the ground-breaking ceremony of new Islamabad International Airport shortly.

This was disclosed by sources in the Ministry of Defence, adding that Civil Aviation Authority has sent a summary to the president for fixing a date for this national event.

The new Islamabad International Airport will have ultra-modern and state-of-the-art facilities. It will be a befitting addition to the Federal Capital, Islamabad, and the country.

The approximate time for completion of this new mega project is envisaged to be three to four years.

The new Islamabad International Airport will be constructed on self-finance basis instead of Build-Operate-Return (BOT) basis. It would provide easy access to aviation facilities for the people of NWFP, Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata), Northern Areas and Azad Jammu and Kashmir besides the Potohar region.

Fast connectivity will be provided for the residents of Islamabad-Rawalpindi through newly constructed Express Ways and rail link already contemplated. The distance of the new Islamabad International Airport will be 25 kilometres from Zero Point.

I hope it will be a modern contemporary (steel & glass) structure just the way Islamabad is.

Steel and glass is not what necessarily comprises good architecture.

^ Especially when you have incidents like the stoning incident against the Pakistan Cricket Team ;) You cannot afford to have a Glass structure!

Well we have named many things after him:
King Faisal Mosque, Faisalabad etc.
I have heard he provided initial funding for our nuke programme?

B/c he donated money for the mosque!!

By the way, the more weirder is the qaddaffi stadium in Lahore!! We should've changed it name a long while ago considering Pakistan isn't socialist or a personal friend of Qadaffi!!

Where is this airport? They keep saying it will start soon but then nothing happens!!!

Where is this airport? They keep saying it will start soon but then nothing happens!!!
Don't worry man.... This is PAKISTAN... Just Kidding. Now Musharraf has returned to Pakistan from foreign visit and the ground breaking ceremony will be just days or a few weeks away.(Inshallah)

B/c he donated money for the mosque!!

By the way, the more weirder is the qaddaffi stadium in Lahore!! We should've changed it name a long while ago considering Pakistan isn't socialist or a personal friend of Qadaffi!!
I totally agree with u. Its just named so bcoz he gave a thundering anti-American speech in this ground during Zulfiqar Bhutto's time. We should have changed the name the moment that pea-brain sent his nulear equipment by ship to US and saying that Pakistan was respomsible for all the Libyan Nuke Prog. I haven't understood yet why we have a such apologetic tone towards such repressive Muslim countries and always try to defend them.

The thought of this airport makes me some excited!

B/c he donated money for the mosque!!

By the way, the more weirder is the qaddaffi stadium in Lahore!! We should've changed it name a long while ago considering Pakistan isn't socialist or a personal friend of Qadaffi!!

Faisal Mosque - Thats actually a good name

Qadaffi Stadium - I agree, theres absolutely no reason to keep that name, esp. when He himself showed his back on Pakistan.

Plus .. Do we even have the name Qaddafi in Pakistan ?

Gaddafi is a joke

He is on drugs thinking he is some type of god commanding the french to get thier mines planted in world war 2 out and then calling for peace in sudan

what shit is this guy on lol

It should be Islamabad International. Saudis should name one of their airports after him because we are not arabs and not part of the arabian peninsula.

Islamabad Intl. is byfar the best choice

It should be Islamabad International. Saudis should name one of their airports after him because we are not arabs and not part of the arabian peninsula.
Good Point!

Are u people getting serious? I was just joking when I said KFIA could be a choice. IIAP is the best name for the new airport............... How about naming the airport BushMush International?

Musharaf Intl isnt that bad though lol

Busharraf Intl. :D

Karzai INTL? lol

What about naming it after Edhi?

Wait but doesn't the person have to be dead?

Yeah I guess thats true.

But then again I still support Islamabad Intl.

how about Liaqat Intl?

finally, it is Islamabad Int'l

Well Rawalpindi International may not be bad either, after Islamabad is the new name of Rawalpindi and I love Rawalpindi because it is my city.

Well Rawalpindi International may not be bad either, after Islamabad is the new name of Rawalpindi and I love Rawalpindi because it is my city.
Well Islamabad is not the new name of Rawalpindi. I hope u did not mean to say it. :weirdo:

That was a weird situation above lol


anyways

it doesnt matter to me what its called as long its not relating to arabs. Isloo INTL or Liaqat Intl doesnt matter its the modernization of the airport and sheer size and quality.

Musharraf to lay foundation stone

Musharraf to lay foundation stone
(DAWN) ISLAMABAD, - President Pervez Musharraf will lay the foundation stone of the New Islamabad International Airport near Fatehjang in the second or third week of May, it is learnt. The new airport which will be one of the most prestigious projects of Pakistan will cost several billions of rupees for which the relative plans are being finalized. The decision to construct the new airport was made last month by Prime Minister Mr. Shaukat Aziz. The foundation stone will be laid next month after the farmers whose land has been acquired will harvest their winter crop. The new airport which will be completed within a period of four to five years will provide the most latest civil aviation facilities. (PPI) (Posted @ 16:45 PST)

Its May 24th and we have yet to see the ground breaking... Are you guys sure this is geniuine?

Its Pakistan! Things take time

Its May 24th and we have yet to see the ground breaking... Are you guys sure this is geniuine?
The report is genuine. But the project seems a fantasy...

Okay, first PTC went down, then Bahria's Lake City plan (according to Pakboy), and now Islamabad airport too ? LOL!

This is a laughing matter for you?

This is obviously a problem thats going to keep us at a standstill forever

So is the airport going to be built or not?

So is the airport going to be built or not?

Yup, it'll be built. Construction will start sometime soon.

This is crazy!

At this rate it will never be built

What I cant understand is the lack of any kind of news.. I never read anything about this in Dawn or any other paper... Just second hand sources.. No newspaper has even mentioned it recently.. No one is even wondering what the heck is hapening.
I thought they ran out of funds!

Islamabad international is the best name.

I think Sir Syed's contribution to our muslim subcontinental nation was much more than that of Fatima Jinnah's. He led the way for the muslims during the days of the british rule and reconciled us with the government after the war of Independence had left us vary of the raj. If he hadnt been there, we might have still be lurking wayy far behind.
Fatima Jinnah may have worked for women and provided moral support to the new Pakistan and to Quaid-e-Azam Mr. Jinnah, but I think that the impact of what Sir Syed did was far greater.

Infact, go a step further. When Sir Syed pioneered Aligarh University, he was labeled "infidal (kafir)"(non believer) by our very own Mullah hardliners for teaching "angrezi" & corrupting muslim minds in subcontinent. Sir Syed stood his ground strong & instilled the importance of science & technology along with faith in subcontinent muslims. It'll be nice & fitting tribute to name Islamabad airport after Sir Syed but dont hold you breath. In a country where a cricket stadium can be named after Gaddafi, expect any name. unfortunately, its a sad reality that we all have to accept it & move on.

Infact, go a step further. When Sir Syed pioneered Aligarh University, he was labeled "infidal (kafir)"(non believer) by our very own Mullah hardliners for teaching "angrezi" & corrupting muslim minds in subcontinent. Sir Syed stood his ground strong & instilled the importance of science & technology along with faith in subcontinent muslims. It'll be nice & fitting tribute to name Islamabad airport after Sir Syed but dont hold you breath. In a country where a cricket stadium can be named after Gaddafi, expect any name. unfortunately, its a sad reality that we all have to accept it & move on.
Right now I think most peole are just anxious to see this project get of the ground! Names come afterwards!

Fatima Jinnah Intl is well deserved

We need to show to the world that Pakistan is not a womens rights violator!

Fatima Jinnah should have won against Ayub Khan but i think the fact that she was a women screwed up her campaign otherwise Pakistan would be secular now.

What is positive about being secular? http://images.fok.nl/s/nopompom.gif

whats positive about being a Islamic Republic?

New Islamabad Air Port
Openning Ceremony to be held on 6th Septemebr 2005


http://www.lahorerealestate.com/ads/public/img-1117788791.gif

whats positive about being a Islamic Republic?

It is not a question of being positive or negative...it is just a matter of not ashamed of what you are!!! The fact is that Pakistan is a country which have a 97% muslim population....so why should not we call ourself Islamic republic....
If china believe in socialism they add this to their country's name...Britain is ok calling themself Kingdom because they have a King or Queen! We are still worry about making other people happy....

Pakistan United.... even if you change your name to John and be a PERFECT socalled secular you will still be a black paki in westren world..... :) That is what I have learnt from my experience so try to be what you are and if you see there is a problem in US then try to reform it within instead of changing all your basics...

It is not a question of being positive or negative...it is just a matter of not ashamed of what you are!!! The fact is that Pakistan is a country which have a 97% muslim population....so why should not we call ourself Islamic republic....
If china believe in socialism they add this to their country's name...Britain is ok calling themself Kingdom because they have a King or Queen! We are still worry about making other people happy....

Pakistan United.... even if you change your name to John and be a PERFECT socalled secular you will still be a black paki in westren world..... :) That is what I have learnt from my experience so try to be what you are and if you see there is a problem in US then try to reform it within instead of changing all your basics...
I dont care about any of the above

The Quaid did not want us as a Islamic Republic so i just want his wishes completed and we have a grown minority its like at 4 percent now likely to reach 5 percent by 2010 do you know how much 5% of our population is?

we have 160 million people in Pakistan
its almost 10 million people!

I dont care about any of the above

The Quaid did not want us as a Islamic Republic so i just want his wishes completed and we have a grown minority its like at 4 percent now likely to reach 5 percent by 2010 do you know how much 5% of our population is?

we have 160 million people in Pakistan
its almost 10 million people!

Yes I know How much is 5% of 160 million....
It is certainly not 10 million!!!!!!
It is 8 million :) even if we take your words of it being 5%......

Let me give you an example of a model secular country and its hypcracy....

The muslims are about 10 % of total french population, which is a significant portion of any population (it is more than double of Pakistan's total minority!!)......And what France did to them is shameful and disgraceful.....
They banned the headscarf....it is denying the basic rights of Muslim women and not allowing them to practice their religion.....One of the basic secular principle is freedom of religion......or may be it only apply to the white people!!!! Can you see the contradiction.....I guess not.....or your answer would be I do not care or some other bla bla bla...

My friend let us not follow the westren world blindly and adopt THEIR way of life with out any thoughts....and not make our decision just to please them! if you want to name the airport after fatima Jinnah....then that is fine...but the reason you gave is Just a wrong reason....I hope you understand what i am trying to say! Hope

Thats extreme secularism

Thier is always a moderate and more extreme scale on anything.

BTW To each his own we can olny wait to see what the youth believes in?

actually i am wrong!

Religion 95% Muslims, 5% others.

thats the stats currently
http://www.infopak.gov.pk/public/govt/basic_facts.html

New Islamabad Air Port
Openning Ceremony to be held on 6th Septemebr 2005


http://www.lahorerealestate.com/ads/public/img-1117788791.gif
Jesus another 3 months!

Quaid said in 1946,"We did not demand Pakistan to simply have a piece of land but we wanted a lab where we could experiment different Islamic principles"
Quaid Said on june 18 1945, "Pakistan not only means freedom and independence but also the muslim ideology, which has to be preseved, which has to come to us as a precious gift and treasure and which we hope the others will share with us"
Quaid said,"I cannot understand a section of people who delibiretaly want to create mischief and make propoganda that the constitution of Pakistan will not be made on the basis of shariah, Islamic principles today r as applicable to life as the were 1300 years before"
Now I ask u guys what do u mean by secularism, freedom,justice,tolerance,respect of minorities, equality etc., then make it clear that all of these and much more is guaranteed by Islam which implies that Islam is the most secular religion in the world. So being an Islamic Republic does not harm any one, it protects everyone.
But now all this discussion should end or begin in other thread bcoz here we r exclusively talking about Isb Apt.

ohh yar ferget abt da names.....yeh check karooo
the park located at f-9 wuz first names F-9 Park in 80'z, changed to CAPITAL PARK in 90'z n then in 1997-8 it wuz finally named FATIMAH JINNAH PARK.....
so dont worry abt the names...they keep on changing.....focus on the ground breaking ceremony.....

WILL THERE EVER BE A GROUND BREAKING CEREMONY!!!!! IM DYING OVER HERE...

Where is it being built?

Quaid said in 1946,"We did not demand Pakistan to simply have a piece of land but we wanted a lab where we could experiment different Islamic principles"
Quaid Said on june 18 1945, "Pakistan not only means freedom and independence but also the muslim ideology, which has to be preseved, which has to come to us as a precious gift and treasure and which we hope the others will share with us"
Quaid said,"I cannot understand a section of people who delibiretaly want to create mischief and make propoganda that the constitution of Pakistan will not be made on the basis of shariah, Islamic principles today r as applicable to life as the were 1300 years before"
Now I ask u guys what do u mean by secularism, freedom,justice,tolerance,respect of minorities, equality etc., then make it clear that all of these and much more is guaranteed by Islam which implies that Islam is the most secular religion in the world. So being an Islamic Republic does not harm any one, it protects everyone.
But now all this discussion should end or begin in other thread bcoz here we r exclusively talking about Isb Apt.
give me direct links for those quotes

Source: http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/june-2005/17/index12.php

Many kept in dark as CAA moves on new airport project

from UMAR CHEEMA
ISLAMABAD - While confusion still prevails in the government circles over the site for new Islamabad airport, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has not only acquired 2,425 kanals of land near Fateh Jang for the project but has also started its fencing.
Unlike past practice, it has been decided this time to keep the planning division away from the project, which so far seems to be in the dark over construction of new airport in the financial year 2005-06, a document of the project has revealed.
The CAA was set to hold the foundation-laying ceremony of the new airport on March 23, but postponed it on the directives of the president’s secretariat.
It had also engaged an event manager besides carrying out site preparation for the ceremony.
President Musharraf was to inaugurate the construction work of the airport project.
The secretariat directed the CAA to complete the physical possession of land and its fencing before holding the formal ceremony of the new airport.
The CAA is now set to hold the foundation-laying ceremony of the airport on September 6 this year.
The CAA bosses recently made a detailed presentation to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and briefed him on the current status of the project and future plans.
A copy of the presentation, available with The Nation reveals that Shaukat Aziz is in the picture regarding of this project for quite sometime and he sanctioned approval to the CAA last year (September 10, 2004) to construct the airport on self-finance basis.
However, officials in defence and planning division have been kept in the dark about the site of the new airport project and when the work commences on it. Parliamentary Secretary for Defense Maj(r) Tanvir Ahmad had informed the National Assembly sometimes back that there was no plan to construct the airport in the near future.
Tanvir’s statement came long after Shaukat had approved construction of the airport on self-finance basis by the CAA. This was followed by advertisements in media for hiring of project management and design consultants on October 25, 2004.
When contacted by The Nation, top officials in the planning division also gave a similar response, saying they did not know about the site and current status of the project.
“We have not received any PC for this project for the current financial year,” said a senior official.
The contradictory statements from government quarters over the site for new airport have had a great impact on the real estate business in areas near the site at Fateh Jang where property prices are now burgeoning.
The copy of presentation further revealed that the CAA had asked the prime minister to delegate powers to its board to approve the new airport as was done in case of the Lahore Airport project.
Japan and China both have offered loans for the project. The CAA sees the Yen Credit (Japanese loan), which is up to $ 300 million, as the best option to finance this project. It has also sought the help of prime minister to direct the economic affairs division to pass on the Japanese loan without any hassle.
It has also sought exemption of custom duties and taxes on all imports related to the new airport to facilitate reduction in project cost.
The CAA bosses had also informed Shaukat Aziz that the work was in progress on the construction of roads, provision of water, gas, electricity and telecommunication facilities.
About the land acquisition, it was revealed that there was 1,960 kanals of land within the boundary of the site for new airport, which was leased out in 1860 by the Punjab government to a family. Its eviction has now been achieved whereas two additional pieces of land measuring 445 and 20 kanals respectively have also been acquired.
Mutation of the land is also likely to have been completed by first week of June 2005. While the fencing of the acquired land will be completed by the end of August 2005, said the presentation report.

^Thanks a lot HUIT, VERY MUCH APPRECIATED!

Pak to build new intl. airport at Fateh Jang

http://www.southasialogistics.com/images/other/385.GIF

Posted on: Monday, April 11, 2005 ; 19:04 IST


Islamabad: The Islamabad International Airport to be constructed at Fateh Jang will be one of the most prestigious project equipped with most ultra modern facilities, which will meet all the requirements of Civil Aviation, it is learnt.
The airport will facilitate the smooth handling of the national and international flights and a large number of passengers coming and going out of Pakistan.

The project for which the comprehensive planning was still in the process in some cases is expected to cost billions of rupee and will be completed within a period of four to five years.

The plans for the new international airport which will replace the old Chaklala Airport will be formally approved by the cabinet in due course.

The fate of the present international airport in Chaklala, however could not be known. It is possible that it might be retained as a PAF airport. It was also not confirmed if the airport will be allowed to operate to cater the internal flights.

The foundation laying ceremony of the airport for which thousands of acres of land has already been acquired will be performed by the President Pervez Musharraf in the near future.

It is learnt that the new airport has been planned to meet all the future requirements, landing strips, terminals, parking bays, passenger lounges, cargo houses and above all the chain of administrative buildings and residential colonies.

According to experts the airport will be a huge and gigantic complex and will be an example of its kind in the region.

Since the new airport will be way from Islamabad and Rawalpindi the authorities plan to construct two way wide roads up to airport to meet the increasing traffic. For the convenience of the passengers and also other people arrangements to run special transport are also under consideration.

The Ministry of Defence has since issued directive to the concern district authorities to discourage setting up of private housing societies within a distance of five to ten miles around the airport.

The decision to construct international airport at Fateh Jang was taken by the government about two months back and it was formally announced by the Shaukat Aziz during his last visit to the area, which is the part of his constituency. -- BR

http://www.southasialogistics.com/topnews.asp?id=2385&country=Pakistan

is that tiny photo at the top there the current Islamabad airport, from what i can see it is the current airport ...

I have high hopes for this airport!

Hope they follow Lahore Airports example!

Lahore INTL is amazing and so damn organized!

Did they even install escalators at Lahore Int. yet?

Yes


and they have had them for a while now


I love that airport!

It 10 milies away from Pakistan

The ground breaking ceremony is on 6th of next month and we still don't have any clues about the design of the new airport. Why is the CAA being so secretive?

It 10 milies away from Pakistan

10 miles away from Pakistan??????

lol nice one UP :lol:

10 miles away from Pakistan??????
Its not your typical Pakistani airport....

ANY PICS RENDERINGS OR ANYTHING YOU LOT JUST CREATE SO MANY THREADS WITHOUT ANY INFO PICS OR ANY CONSTRUCTION UPDATES.

its undercounstruction

airport photography is banned in Pakistan

http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/5936/islamabadsm11aj.jpg

ANY PICS RENDERINGS OR ANYTHING YOU LOT JUST CREATE SO MANY THREADS WITHOUT ANY INFO PICS OR ANY CONSTRUCTION UPDATES.


well you should read the topic before talking, its launched on the 6th september, happy now. :)

there was a piece of news that that the land mafia has taken control of the land the CAA had purchased not too long ago. it had said that the authorities were having difficulty getting them off and would begin to use force. it might get messy. anyone have any news on that?

I hope it gets messy!

These guys are jahils

september coming up....any further news abt the airport??

itz 4th Sept today~!!!
ANY NEWS REGARDING THIS PROJECT~!

I dont see this every getting started!!! SO DAMN FRUSTRATING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I swear, if this doesnt get started soon, this will be a blow to the image of Pakistajnis everywhere... I mean, all this hub bub and nothing on the ground but a dirt patch!

U talkin abt the image dude~! Its not only the image.....u have no idea how much that airport means to all the investors out there.....the property around the airport is going in negative of profit....societies like green city, top city, mumtaz city and other are causing a hell lot frustration fer the investors......bastards i dont get y it isnt being inaugurated....no news.....2 days to 6sept n no news at all......

On the other hand CDA has opened up the new sector I-15, which has decreased the land value of all the private societies near Motorway, Jhang Road. If CDA opens up another sector in that area, the investors are doomed~!!!!!!!!!!!! :bash: :bash:

New Islamabad Airport shelved due to lack of funds

Secy Defense


ISLAMABAD, August 30 The Parliamentary
Secretary Defense, Maj (retd) Tanveer Hussain Syed,
has said that the construction of new Islamabad
Airport was not initiated so far because of
government's lack of funds and promised government's
immediate beginning on the projects as soon as new
funds were available.
While further elaborating on the affairs of PIA and
national aviation scenario in general during "The
Question hour" in the National Assembly session on
Monday, he said that a huge tract of land measuring
about 3179 acres had already been acquired for the
purpose, and its acquisition is being sought with the
help of the Punjab Provincial government.

He also informed the Assembly that PIA grounded about
13 aircraft this year, due to their damaged condition
in various incidents. The National Carrier has leased
about eight aircraft during the past five years,
purchasing seven used and three new aircraft.

In February, two Fokker aircraft were leased from the
Expo Lanka Aviation of Sri Lanka to the tune of U$D28,
000 per month. PIA purchased one aircraft for U$D12,
00,000, and further six G-747 aircraft from Cathy
Pacific Airlines for an additional U$D 62million
package deal.

In further deals, PIA leased six Airbus aircraft at
the rate of U$D 1,82,000 per annum, for a period of 10
years. It has purchased further 3 new Boeing 777
aircraft for U$D 35 from the company.

He also informed the House that the government is
contemplating two new airports at Islamabad and
Gwadar. The later is being planned at about 35
kilometers from Zero Point junction at Garandani,
Gwadar.

Speaking on the occasion, the federal Minister for
Law, Mr. Wasi Zafar elaborated that Human Rights
Relief Funds had depleted without being properly
utilized. The amount in question was about Rs.
1500,000, which were way short than the original
requirement. He said that the Prime Minister has been
apprised of the situation and demand for increase has
been initiated.

He informed that during the year 2002-03 about 243
suffering people have been relieved from these funds.
He also informed the House that about ten officials of
the Ministry of Law availed official foreign tours,
during the past four year.

you might is well forget about it cos i dont expect it start till the next 3 years and gwadar one will next 5 years.

Im hate Islamabada Internation.. Its the most embarassing "airport" on the face of the planet...

well the project is really an embaracement and all the funding this is just another excuse. u can generate funds for an capital city airport for the last 40 years. that really is bullshit!!!

Had the govt been serious about the Airport, they could've raised the required funds by announcing another phase of DHA :)
Its sad how they always come up with the same excuse for things that really matters - I remember the govt had announced 5 crore rupees only when some parts of Sindh were flooded... whereas a 5-marla commercial plot in DHA Lahore costs around 8 crore... its sad really!

New Airport Islamabad detailed info
The Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan (CAA) is operating Islamabad International Airport in the suburbs of Rawalpindi city for the last 54 years. The Airport also serves closely located city of Islamabad, which is the capital of Pakistan. This airport is now heavily congested in its technical facilities, terminal building, aprons, taxiways etc. because of increased air traffic. It is located in the midst of heavily built up and densely populated region and is hemmed in for expansion both physically and environmentally. It is an important gateway to Pakistan leading further to a number of destinations around, particularly to Central Asia and Western China, besides Northern Areas of Pakistan.

The Airport handles around 25000 commercial aircraft movements, 2.5 million passengers and 27,000 metric tons of cargo every year. The traffic had a stable growth rate in the past, which is now temporarily squeezed by security situation around Pakistan and limits of the capacities. Annual revenues from this much traffic are around Rs. 550 Million with a local operating expenditure of approximately Rs. 211 million. Therefore, the airport provides an operating surplus of approximately Rs. 339 million. The operations will be shifted to the new location.

CAA has decided to build a new airport at Pind Ranjha outside the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi to shift its airport operations. More than 3200 acres of land worth 40 Million US dollars has already been acquired. The Feasibility Report of the project was prepared by M/s Aeroport de Paris of France. Master planning and detailed designing was done by M/s Flughafen- Aeir Consult (FAG) of Germany. All planning activity was supervised by M/s Bechtel Inc. of USA between the years 1984 and 1986.

CAA, at present, is heavily committed in financing its other infra-structural projects at a number of airports. Because of scarcity of financial resources, it is looking for an investors or a partner, experienced in building and successfully operating any renowned international airport of the world, to execute and operate this project on BOT or Joint Venture (JV) basis on the following conditions: -



The cost of the New Islamabad International Airport (NIIAP) project is expected to be around US$ 250 Millions. BOT proposals are expected with 100% financing and control for a specific period of time. However, cost of investments already made by CAA on planning & designing, purchase of 3200 acres of land, and value of surrendering business of present international airport to the new airport can be treated as equity of CAA. Value of land is calculated as US$ 40 million whereas present market value is double that amount.



In case of a joint venture proposal, the selected Partner is expected to offer financing in foreign exchange for purchase of systems & equipment and hold share in the airport profits for a pre-agreed period of time. After that CAA will by the privatized share and operate.



The project will be completed in 30 months after allowing six months for mobilization after signing of the MoU.


According to estimates, the projects offer a lucrative internal rate of return on successful completion visualizing 50% of income from commercial exploitation/ development. The initial income of the project is expected to be around Rupees one billion per annum. However, the partner will do his own calculations. CAA will provide the data. Plans to recover investments in the first ten years would be encouraged. This brief is for those, who may be interested in filing interest for taking up this project on BOT basis or by arranging foreign exchange as a financier or as an operating Partner.

Approximate land area available for new Airport is 3500 Acres.
Expected Project Cost US $ 250-300 Million.

Approximately 2000 Acres of Land to be earmarked for Aviation related activities to include


Runway/Parking Bays for wide body
Terminal Building
Spaces for Airline's Operations etc. Other Allied Services


Approximately 1500 Acres of Land area to be earmarked for Commercial Development of


Four Star Hotel
Duty Free Shopping Plaza
Business Center
Food Courts
International Convention Center
Shopping Plaza
Cargo Village
Any other Commercial Project
Housing Complex

New airport islamabad
It has been announced that Malaysia will construct Islamabad new airport on the basis of BOT. cost is estimated between 10 to 12 billion rupees. Its inauguration will be next few days

Thanks for the info. Will the dutyfree "plaza" be inside the terminal building like Dubai and London or outside like Bahrain?

duty free shops will be inside the airport but outside will have normal shopping malls but will be duty free,

find the exact date n let us now¬!
damn f***ing curious abt it¬!

Pakboy, may we know the source of this info?

Will the duty free shops inside be like Lahore's (1 or 2 small shops) or like a mall-type shopping area like Heathrow and Hong Kong?

it better be like heathrow, not neessarily that big.

New airport islamabad
It has been announced that Malaysia will construct Islamabad new airport on the basis of BOT. cost is estimated between 10 to 12 billion rupees. Its inauguration will be next few days

Source?

New airport islamabad
It has been announced that Malaysia will construct Islamabad new airport on the basis of BOT. cost is estimated between 10 to 12 billion rupees. Its inauguration will be next few days

Whats your source ?

it was in the jung, 2 days ago.

daily jang Rawalpindi dated 7th Oct, 2005

this was the article in jung

http://www.lahorerealestate.com/ads/public/img-1130131980.jpg

Hey anybody know how many runways? I think Islamabad should consider North-South and East-West runways instead of parallel runways.

My guess is the runways are in East-West Orientation.

This project isn't dead yet! :)

Source: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005\12\04\story_4-12-2005_pg1_4

Pakistan will get world-class logistics chain: Aziz

* Outlines plans to upgrade rail, road, sea and air infrastructure
* Inaugurates oil pier project at Karachi Port

KARACHI: The government is improving transport infrastructure and aims to develop a “world-class” logistics chain to cater to the needs of Pakistan’s growing economy, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Saturday.

“We must go for a world-class logistics chain to meet the requirement of fast growing trade and a projected economic growth of 6 to 8 percent in the coming years,” he said while inaugurating Oil Pier II at Karachi Port.

The prime minister said the government’s plan involves “total refurbishing, restructuring, enhancement and modernisation of rail, roads, sea and air infrastructure in Pakistan”.

A deep water terminal is coming up at Karachi Port, various projects are planned for Port Qasim and a new port is near completion at Gwadar, he said. “To make the ports efficient, outsourcing, privatisation and corporatisation will be a way of life. We have to meet the standards of world class operations at our ports.”

The government is also upgrading airports and some major international airlines will start operating out of Karachi and other Pakistani cities soon, he said. There has been a shortage of seats for air travellers and PIA must increase capacity to cater to this demand, or foreign airlines will, he said.

More hotels are also needed to cater to the growing number of foreign visitors and the government will support private companies investing in this sector, Aziz said. Two leading international companies will build a new airport at Islamabad.

The government has a major refurbishing plan for rail track, engines and coaches to speed up cargo services to and from Karachi. “We have started a fast cargo train which is doing very well and the private sector is encouraged to look into this opportunity,” he added.

The government is planning a highway network between Karachi and north of the city, Aziz said. The highway between Peshawar and Faisalabad is near completion and will then link Multan, Sukkur and then Karachi.

The prime minister praised the “atmosphere of growth” at the Karachi Port Trust, noting that this was his fifth visit to the port in 18 months to inaugurate projects. He said Oil Pier II would cater to Pakistan’s growing oil demand. app

Shauket is giving his promises again! Lets see if he can deliver this time.

He also said he would bring poverty down considerably but i havent seen much of a improvement.

This world-class logistics chain's gonna take a hell lot of work

UP it does not take a day to take a country which is at the verge of being declared a default nation to a country like france or south korea. we all have witnessed the economic stastics which have improved all over from exports to foreign exchange reserves...pakistan is a county of 160 million people...many living below the poverty line. it takes time. China has been growing like hell for years now it still has a lot of people in poverty. so it all takes time and a lot of effort.

I have heard that some people are objecting on the location of airport for security reasons. This is the reason the project has not yet taken off inspite of the fact that it is the only project in which Prime Mimister shaukat is taking too much interest.

http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/5263/1252os.jpg

Designed by NESPAK!!

That design up there was dropped way back in learly nineties...
There is new design on the cards now, but dont have any clue why it hasnt started yet.

CAA initiates $300m new Islamabad airport project

NIIA to have duty-free shops, hotels, air malls, business centre,

food courts and recreational facilities



KARACHI: The first-ever green-field airport would be built in Islamabad at a cost of $300 million, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced on Friday.

Director General CAA, Air Marshal Pervez Akhtar Nawaz signed an agreement with a renowned international consultant - Louis Berger Group of USA - in association with Pakistani consulting firm ECIL, to undertake project management services.

The CAA is undertaking the development of the New Islamabad International Airport (NIIA) as part of the implementation of this prestigious project.

The contract signing ceremony was held at the CAA headquarters, Jinnah International Airport, Karachi.

The New Islamabad International Airport (NIIA) along with the new terminal building at Karachi and Lahore International Airports was part of CAA’s overall development programme.

However, due to financial commitments to the new terminal projects at Karachi and Lahore, along with other operational works, CAA could not launch this project earlier.

During last few years, CAA’s financial position has significantly improved and now it is able to undertake the mega project, the CAA spokesman said.

While the first contract for Project Management Services is signed, the CAA is close to receiving bids and proposals from international design consultants and signature architects for design of the new airport.

It is envisaged that the Design Consultants will commence their services by the end of March 2006. Soon after the mobilization of the Project Management Consultants, other processes for invitation of bids and award of construction contracts will be initiated. It is anticipated that the new facility will become operational by 2010.

The new airport site is located on 3,200 acres of land, acquired by CAA in 1980’s at Pind Ranjha near Fateh Jang, some 20km from Zero-Point, Islamabad and 23 km from Saddar, Rawalpindi involving driving time of only 20-25 minutes through network of motorways and highways.

The airport will be developed at par with international standards to serve as major hub for all aviation activities in the region.

Estimated to cost about $300 million, the new Airport facility, which is the first green-field airport in Pakistan, shall comprise a contemporary state-of-the-art passenger terminal building, control tower, runway with a provision of a secondary runway, taxiways, apron, cargo complex, and hangar together with all the necessary infrastructure and ancillary facilities. It would cater to the requirements of latest generation of modern passenger aircrafts. The new airport will have a modular design to handle 6.5 million passengers per annum and 100,000 metric tonnes cargo per annum.

Being a new airport, a significant portion of the land has been earmarked for commercial purposes such as duty-free shops, hotel and convention centre, air malls, business centre, food courts, leisure and recreational facilities.

The new airport is envisaged to be a modern landmark structure symbolic to represent twenty-first century Pakistan, as it will be the diplomatic and business gateway to Pakistan through the Capital City of Islamabad.

http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jan2006-daily...ess/b1.htm

Finally!

We have been waiting for so many years for this :bash: :bash: :bash:

that sure as hell is some news! cuz if theres anything that islamabad needs on urgent bases is an international airport of high standards.

yAwn!!!

what does green-field airport mean? An airport on a green field?

well the render of it looks very green.

http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/5263/1252os.jpg

wow you..kidding me that small of a airport where only 3 gates are .. thats pathetic like.. they said they want to make a nice airport make it atleast so its good in international standrads.. something unique because karachi and lahore have like same design.. and plus islamabad is increasing in its aviation .. traffic.. i have seen 4-5 jumbos land at once and ... and i also heard many airlines want to fly there because theres alot of potention in that route but.. the airport standards are not good niether the runaway.. when airplane takes offf it takes off straight over settalite town which is not suppose to happen ..they need to built something nice that garbage that is shown is like for domestic.. many airlines returning to pakistan now days and they mostly start at islamabad.. .. very rediclous that they can even thinkin of building an airport like this..

That was the old render!

Please read previous replies...

it was an old one, but it still appears on nespaks site, maybe they are using this one and have made a few changes to it.


and wat airports have you been looking at, since when did lhr and khr airports look the same, theres a lights years difference between them.

it was an old one, but it still appears on nespaks site, maybe they are using this one and have made a few changes to it.


and wat airports have you been looking at, since when did lhr and khr airports look the same, theres a lights years difference between them.

If you would read the news item carefully, this is not being done by Nespak, but by The Louis Berger Group. Their website (link below) doesn't currently say anything about this project yet, maybe because its a recent deal.

http://www.louisberger.com/

it was an old one, but it still appears on nespaks site, maybe they are using this one and have made a few changes to it.


and wat airports have you been looking at, since when did lhr and khr airports look the same, theres a lights years difference between them.

I know the dsign is diff but if you look at it it has the same feel style to it nothing unique aboout it except the artitechture

Salam,

Wow, Great news. I'm glad that its a greenfield airport. Heathrow has to be closed at night because of its brownfield status. I like the idea for Islamabad's new airport. It suites Islamabad's "Environmental Friendly City" status.

Lahore's new airport, Karachi and basically almost all our airports are brownfield. We have overcrowding at the site as a major hurdel for expansion. Besides, air and noise pollution is a major convern for all our airports.

Peace.

ISLAMABAD, Jan 7: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will soon be receiving bids and proposals from international consultants and architects on the design of the $300 million new Islamabad airport. It is envisaged that the design consultants will commence their services by the end of March this year. The CAA has already hired the services of Louis Berger Group of the US in association with Pakistani consulting firm, ECIL, for undertaking development of the new Islamabad airport.

Processes for invitation of bids and award of construction contracts will be initiated soon. It is anticipated that the new facility will become operational by 2010.

The new airport site is located on 3,200 acres acquired by the CAA in the 1980s at Pind Ranjha near Tarnol-Fatehjang Road, some 20kms from Zero Point and 23kms from Saddar, Rawalpindi.

The site of the new airport would be linked with the motorway and national highways.

The CAA said the airport would be developed according to international standards to serve as a major hub for all aviation activities in the region.

Estimated to cost about $300 million, the new airport facility, which will be the first green field airport in Pakistan, shall comprise a contemporary state-of-the-art passenger terminal building, control tower, runway with a provision of a secondary runway, taxiways, apron, cargo complex, and hangar together with all the necessary infrastructure and ancillary facilities.

It would cater to the requirements of latest generation of modern passenger aircraft. The new airport will have a modular design to handle 6.5 million passengers per annum and 100,000 metric tons cargo per annum.

Being a new airport, a significant portion of the land has been earmarked for commercial purposes such as duty-free shops, hotel and convention centre, air malls, business centre, food courts, leisure and recreational facilities.—

http://dawn.com/2006/01/08/top18.htm

Salam,

Wow, Great news. I'm glad that its a greenfield airport. Heathrow has to be closed at night because of its brownfield status. I like the idea for Islamabad's new airport. It suites Islamabad's "Environmental Friendly City" status.

Lahore's new airport, Karachi and basically almost all our airports are brownfield. We have overcrowding at the site as a major hurdel for expansion. Besides, air and noise pollution is a major convern for all our airports.

Peace.


wat is greenfield, brownfield

Salam,

Major cities of the world, when they re-design (masterplan wise), they try to keep the airport far away from the main crowded city on a land (typically under agriculture :) ). This is not only important for flight safty (incase of a major aviation hub, like Heathrow!), it is also very flexible to expand. This type of construction is called greenfield. Airports are then connected to the city centers with highways, motorways or carriageways. (Or even subways, as in JFK) Expansion of the runway and the terminal building is easy on such airports.

Any project (or airport) that is re-designed upon the sight of an old one, where there is already too much congestion (and so you have to kind'a demolish certain construction) is called brownfield. This is because the land gives a kind'a brown look (as opposed to greener look) because of previous construction.

Peace.

They built it pretty far from Islamabad and Rawalpindi...are they going to build a road to the airport or have a service road from the Motorway?

Salam,
They built it pretty far from Islamabad and Rawalpindi...are they going to build a road to the airport or have a service road from the Motorway?

According to the articles, it is supposed to be connected to both GT Road and M2. Lets see.

Peace.

Technically elaborating the above, the proposed ISLAMABAD AIRPORT is situated on the extension of KASHMIR HIGWAY, the intersection of MOTORWAY & KASHMIR HIGHWAY is now known as ZERO POINT, which was previously situated at the intersection of KASHMIR HIGHWAY & ISLAMABAD HIGWAY-FAISAL AVENUE near G.7/1 & G.8/4. The KASHMIR HIGHWAY therefore intersects MOTORWAR from ISLAMABAD AIRPORT at almost 6-8km and GT Road Peshawer-Rawalpindi Section at almost 14-18km approx. and is approx 20-25km from the proposed TARNOL-FATEHJHANG ROAD INTERCHANGE.

New Islamabad International Airport ready for ground breaking Ceremony
Tuesday February 07, 2006 (1507 PST)

RAWALPINDI: Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has appointed Lois Berger, a well known firm of USA, as Management Consultant for the construction of New Islamabad International Airport (NIIA) while the selection of the Design Consultant will be completed by March this year.
Sources said on Monday that CAA has acquired about 30,000 Kanals of land for the construction of New Islamabad International Airport at Fateh Jang and payments have been made to almost all the property owners in different phases.

The sources said that the process of land acquisition for the project began in 1984. This territory falls in district Rawalpindi and Attock.

"The tenders for construction of roads inside the boundary have been floated in media. The work on boundary wall and watch towers is in final stage," the sources added.

CAA has completed all the homework and preparations for ground breaking ceremony and the project would be completed in four years.

The construction of new airport is the need of the hour as present Islamabad airport cannot accommodate increasing number of domestic and international flights and challenges of modern times.
Courtesy pakistantimes.net

End.

http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=133509

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j151/KHUREE/isloo456.jpg

Helipad for the inauguration of New International Airport Islamabad

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j151/KHUREE/Isloo12.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j151/KHUREE/isloo2.jpg

Pictures of Tanaza Dam near by the Isloo Airport Site

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j151/KHUREE/idkj908.jpg

They had to waste money on that helipad just for an inauguration! Why can't things start in Pakistan without an inauguration??? :/

^ Lots of things are changing in Pakistan...this sadly won't... :lol:

Gotta Love Pakistan...

Great news, hopefully this project will get completed soon. ISB needs a good airport. Where are the renders though? I hope the company that is supposed to build this airport puts some up on their website.

GOD when is this gonna start......~!
helpless situation for a year now~!!

NO HE IS A ENEMY OF THE STATE!

You call him enemy of the state and urself a Pakistani I don't this this is how it works bcz we are here today bcz of him or Pakistan would have been finished by now..... :bash:

^ Who is enemy of the state? I don't get it? Who are you guys talking about?

You call him enemy of the state and urself a Pakistani I don't this this is how it works bcz we are here today bcz of him or Pakistan would have been finished by now..... :bash:
We are not here because of him and if you had that notion it is about time you removed it. The man was a traitor for what he did to our image with his actions which were also illegal. LMAO if anyone should be thanked it would be Bhutto for intiating the program.

yeh this is the current one well i have never been to Islamabad Airport so duno what's its like but heard it's quite small ?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Islamabad-Airport-40156.JPG

Islamabad-Arrival
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Islamabad-Arrival-40105.JPG/800px-Islamabad-Arrival-40105.JPG


Civil Aviation to develop new Islamabad Airport

ISLAMABAD: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) signed an agreement to develop a new airport with Louis Berger Group.

Director General, CAA, Air Marshal Pervez Akhtar Nawaz, and Fredric Berger of the Louis Berger Group signed the agreement.

The new airport site is located on 3,200 acres of land, which was acquired by CAA in the 80's at Pind Ranjiha near Fateh Jang, some 20 km from Zero Point, Islamabad, and 23 km from Saddar, Rawalpindi involving driving time of only 20 to 25 minutes through network of motorways and highways.

The airport will be developed as a state-of-the-art facility at par with international standards to serve as a major hub for all aviation activities in the region. Estimated to cost about $300 million, the new Airport facility, which is the first Green Field airport in Pakistan.

The NIIA will have a modular design to handle 6.5 million passengers per annum and 100,000 metric tonnes cargo per annum.

June 01, 2006 Thursday Rabi-ul-Awwal 02,1426 A.H.

geo.tv

I dont care about any of the above

The Quaid did not want us as a Islamic Republic so i just want his wishes completed and we have a grown minority its like at 4 percent now likely to reach 5 percent by 2010 do you know how much 5% of our population is?

we have 160 million people in Pakistan
its almost 10 million people!
how can u say Quaid didn't wanted an Islamic Republic. Quaid was a big supporter of the two Nation theory which is:
"Muslims of sub-contintent r different from Hindus on the basis of Islamic Ideology"
And how can u say that minorities will grow to 5% in Pakistan. how can u prove that minorities r growing??????????????????????.
and:
" Islam is the only ultimate truth of this universe"

how can u say Quaid didn't wanted an Islamic Republic. Quaid was a big supporter of the two Nation theory which is:
"Muslims of sub-contintent r different from Hindus on the basis of Islamic Ideology"
And how can u say that minorities will grow to 5% in Pakistan. how can u prove that minorities r growing??????????????????????.
and:
" Islam is the only ultimate truth of this universe"
This UP guy man what does he think he is....we thank Bhutto but if he wasn't there then we wouldn't have any weapon to day and would have been another Kashmir by now...and Quaid wanted this nation and we have the white colour in our flag which represents the other religions.....it is all equall....He fought with Ghandi Ji and Nehru to make Islamic Republic of Pakistan ok ... :weirdo:

Conservatives taking a shot at me!

Cool!

No sectionalism please!

how can u say Quaid didn't wanted an Islamic Republic. Quaid was a big supporter of the two Nation theory which is:
"Muslims of sub-contintent r different from Hindus on the basis of Islamic Ideology"
And how can u say that minorities will grow to 5% in Pakistan. how can u prove that minorities r growing??????????????????????.
and:
" Islam is the only ultimate truth of this universe"

First of all, from the tone of your question it seems you are against the idea of minorities in Pakistan in the first place or at least their population growth, and if that's true, that is ignorant of you since in the same post you proudly wave the banner of our "Islamic republic". Let me tell you that as a Muslim you should be proud if minorities are living in our country and growing in numbers as well, since that suggests our country and people have respect for minorities and thus follows one of the basic principles of an "Islamic state".

Since you provided a paraphrase from Jinnah to support your argument, here's a famous quote of Jinnah's to support mine:

"You will find that in the course of time, Hindus will cease to be Hindus and Muslims will cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the state."

From this quote, anyone who understands english would properly infer that Jinnah wanted a secular Pakistan, which was free from the risk of Hindu domination. Instead, we've gotten a Pakistan which has treated minorities exactly the way Jinnah feared the Muslims of India would be treated. By minorities I don't only mean Hindus and Christians, but certain sects and social groups as well (e.g. Ahmadis).

As a religious Sunni Muslim I find this to be an issue of both religious and national embarassment and if you don't feel the same way, please pray for guidance as only Allah can help you.

Sorry.. got a little carried away there. :P Back to the topic at hand.. as far as I know, there was supposed to be a decision made on the design of the airport in the middle of May.. I wonder if any of the companies involved have the designs up?

Sikandar!

You ruined all my fun!

I was going to come back home and respond to them but you seem to have done a good job.

Is this project ever going to be started? It is supposed to be the most expensive civil aviation project ever carried out in the history of Pakistan.

P.S: I just wanna ask what do we mean by secularism? justice,rights for minorities, etc. , then believe me Islam is the most secular religion. Whether Pakistan is an Islamic Republic or not, should not be an issue 59 years after our independence. It is time that we chose a path for our selves for making Pakistan "one of the greatest nation of the world". And that path has been clearly defined by Quaid-e-Azam. He wanted tolerance, love, humanity, freedom, rule of law, government of the people,justice and equal rights for minorities etc. for the citizens of Pakistan. and all of these things are also guaranteed by Islam. So if we are able to offer all our citizens these basic rights, this debate would end. I don't think we need to fight over such trivial matters. If this is achieved, we would be able to boast ourselves both as a true Islamic and secular nation.

That is a contradiction!

You can not be a islamic nation and a secular nation. In secular I mean that NO RELIGION in any affairs of the state or politics. Everyone can follow any religion they would like and finally we can move foward. I am looking foward to the day we have a Pakistani prime minister or President from the minority.

That is a contradiction!

You can not be a islamic nation and a secular nation. In secular I mean that NO RELIGION in any affairs of the state or politics. Everyone can follow any religion they would like and finally we can move foward. I am looking foward to the day we have a Pakistani prime minister or President from the minority.


Firstly its not at all a contradiction because the whole statement of my discussion is that ISLAM IS THE MOST SECULAR RELIGION.Even in secular systems you have to bring in RELIGIOUS TEACHINGS AND RULES to prohibit certain actions. For exampe: India is the world's largest democracy and the world's largest secular state but minorities there are least protected by the government. Secondly, no one in their minds would call for implementation of something in India that is contrary to teachings of Hinduism. So though they r a secular nation but they have applied certain limits to their secularism in accordance with the beliefs of the majority there to avoid chaos. US has no state religion and is secular, but when it comes to same sex marriages, even the top leadership of the country including majority of Republicans and Democrats oppose it. And they r moving forward for a state law which will define marriage as the union of man and woman. Now secularism should have allowed this act to have taken place but again relgion came and applied its limits. Islam is just like a USER'S MANUAL which gives u a way to operate the state affairs in additon to many other things. And who says every one cannot follow their own religion in an Islamic state. Islam always provided the minorities an umbrella to prosper. Jews always suffered at the hands of other religions but were safeguarded by Muslims. And i don't see any Islamic Law prohibiting a non-muslim to run for president or pm in a Muslim majority state if he or she works within the framework provided by Islam. (I hope to see a Muslim president of US too though). So i mean to say that if it were complete secularism there would be complete chaos and anarchy every where. It is just that a bit of religion(be it Christianity, Judaisim, Islam, Hinduism etc.) here and there, that is keeping the affairs of the world in order. and that is what i believe: Islam is most neareset to idealism.(and if Islamic laws r implemented in their true spirit unlike Hudood ordinance or the Arab Islamic model or Taliban, then u will have every one extremely happy). Muhammad (SAW) showed it to us not by persecuting minorities or women but by creating a healthy atmosphere of rule of law and justice. And what is happening in Pakistan is not bcoz it is an Islamic Republic but bcoz there is no rule of law in the country. Our dictators, politicians, mullahs, generals made laws in the name of Islam that r not even Islamic (Hudood ordinance for instance). Just bcoz of these Nazi laws we cant say that Islam failed in Pakistan and there is need for a secular system.

No religion in any affairs? Even America isn't secular by your definitions, not is Britain (No King or Queen can be Catholic).

Anyways, i cant wait for renders of this airport

funny how discussions take turns....we went from airports to secularism...

^^^^
LOL, i think ppl are just passing their time with the secularism issue untill we get something more on the airport. Unfortunately airports arent such projects that give u news every other day.

First of all, from the tone of your question it seems you are against the idea of minorities in Pakistan in the first place or at least their population growth, and if that's true, that is ignorant of you since in the same post you proudly wave the banner of our "Islamic republic". Let me tell you that as a Muslim you should be proud if minorities are living in our country and growing in numbers as well, since that suggests our country and people have respect for minorities and thus follows one of the basic principles of an "Islamic state".

Since you provided a paraphrase from Jinnah to support your argument, here's a famous quote of Jinnah's to support mine:

"You will find that in the course of time, Hindus will cease to be Hindus and Muslims will cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the state."

From this quote, anyone who understands english would properly infer that Jinnah wanted a secular Pakistan, which was free from the risk of Hindu domination. Instead, we've gotten a Pakistan which has treated minorities exactly the way Jinnah feared the Muslims of India would be treated. By minorities I don't only mean Hindus and Christians, but certain sects and social groups as well (e.g. Ahmadis).

As a religious Sunni Muslim I find this to be an issue of both religious and national embarassment and if you don't feel the same way, please pray for guidance as only Allah can help you.
first i am not against the population growth of minorities. if u can read i 've just demanded the base on which "UnitedPakistan" is saying that we've a grown minority.
second iam not against giving basic rights to minorities which Islam also emphasizes upon. i just don't agree with UnitedPakistan on his statement that Quaid didn't wanted an Islamic state. Quaid didn't wanted a theocracic state but Pakistan is a state which was demanded by the Muslims of sub-continent only and only for the sake of Islam.

That is a contradiction!

You can not be a islamic nation and a secular nation. In secular I mean that NO RELIGION in any affairs of the state or politics. Everyone can follow any religion they would like and finally we can move foward. I am looking foward to the day we have a Pakistani prime minister or President from the minority.
why no religion in affairs of state and politics etc. Islam is not only a "religion".Islam is complete code of conduct. while giving interview to Beverley Nicholas Jinnah stated:
"Islam is not only a reiligious doctrine but a complete code of conduct for
life"
Islam gives directions to all Muslims on every aspect of life of all the times (from 612A.D.-2006A.D. till end of time) ranging from religious issues to politics and economics. so as a Muslim state we must think in this way and try follow Islam in every aspect of our life(ranging fom religious issues to politics and economics).

Firstly its not at all a contradiction because the whole statement of my discussion is that ISLAM IS THE MOST SECULAR RELIGION.
Well secular does mean seaperation of religion. So yes it would be a contradiction.

Even in secular systems you have to bring in RELIGIOUS TEACHINGS AND RULES to prohibit certain actions.
In today's secular system this holds true but I would like Pakistan to develop a real system in which that can hold true. Laws must be passed to prevent people from changing the system so it would tilt towards one religion or another. Yes, the only problem is that the people will want to favor their teachings. As long as for the most part our government stays away from religion it would be better for us. Therefore, the government can not make a distinction between either group. Islam should just not be used as a method of law in a country or a political system based on Islam. This is a dangerous act and thanks god reforms were passed to help limit the damage on society that it can have. I remember people running would say it is there god given right to win a election. Actually, in Pakistan we have the hudood laws and yes we have laws to prevent the minority from holding those posts you mentioned. Now I think you got me wrong...I am aware of these laws and how unislamic they are but this is also a faltering point of the system. It is much easier for religious parties to pass such laws because of this setup. I am sure you remember the entire religion in the passport debate in our country not too far back. The MMA did this solely to stomp on the Ahmadis. So we can clearly see the system is being abused.

No religion in any affairs? Even America isn't secular by your definitions, not is Britain (No King or Queen can be Catholic).

Anyways, i cant wait for renders of this airport
America is definetly not secular but the minorities dont face much bullshit from the majority. They may face racism but thats a whole diffrent issue. As for your refrence to Britian, the British king and queen really do not hold any power and are just figureheads anyway. As for the British government that is a completely diffrent story.

first i am not against the population growth of minorities. if u can read i 've just demanded the base on which "UnitedPakistan" is saying that we've a grown minority.
second iam not against giving basic rights to minorities which Islam also emphasizes upon. i just don't agree with UnitedPakistan on his statement that Quaid didn't wanted an Islamic state. Quaid didn't wanted a theocracic state but Pakistan is a state which was demanded by the Muslims of sub-continent only and only for the sake of Islam.
Yes, you clearly are making it seem as if you are against population growth of the minorities. The proof is simple and you can find it in many places...I will explain it though and leave the researching solely to you...People have many diffrent estimates but we must follow the GOP's statistics for more accurate results...Now the old claim was 97% Muslim and 3% other. The new claim and the most recent claim is 95% Muslim and 5% other. So you can see a 2% increase in the growth of the minority. Please use the GOP's site for the new data. Basic rights? wtf? What makes them any less citizens of Pakistan then the drug dealer on the corner of the street that doesnt follow Islam fully? This is very sickening! I hope you are just a expat instead of a REAL Pakistani. The QUAID WANTED a state for the MINORITIES OF INDIA. He marketted the idea to the muslims though and thats why it seems like Pakistan was created for muslims only. As for your post it contradicts one of Quaids best quotes.


why no religion in affairs of state and politics etc. Islam is not only a "religion".Islam is complete code of conduct. while giving interview to Beverley Nicholas Jinnah stated:
"Islam is not only a reiligious doctrine but a complete code of conduct for
life"
Yes, it is a code of conduct for people but it should not be a code of conduct for a entire country. Not everyone in Pakistan is a muslim. We have many people from ancient tribes still in our northern area's and they all add positives to our culture. 5% of 160 million is about 8 million through very rough calculations. So you want 8 million people to follow something that is NOT part of their beliefs? Why is it so difficult to keep religion at home for you people? :bash:

And please provide a link to that interview to us!



Islam gives directions to all Muslims on every aspect of life of all the times (from 612A.D.-2006A.D. till end of time) ranging from religious issues to politics and economics. so as a Muslim state we must think in this way and try follow Islam in every aspect of our life(ranging fom religious issues to politics and economics).
So you will force 8 million people to follow Islamic beliefs and principles? :sleepy:

KEEP RELIGION AT HOME! THE GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE AND THAT INCLUDES THE 8 MILLION LARGE MINORITY OF PAKISTAN!

In today's secular system this holds true but I would like Pakistan to develop a real system in which that can hold true. Laws must be passed to prevent people from changing the system so it would tilt towards one religion or another. Yes, the only problem is that the people will want to favor their teachings. As long as for the most part our government stays away from religion it would be better for us. Therefore, the government can not make a distinction between either group. Islam should just not be used as a method of law in a country or a political system based on Islam. This is a dangerous act and thanks god reforms were passed to help limit the damage on society that it can have. I remember people running would say it is there god given right to win a election. Actually, in Pakistan we have the hudood laws and yes we have laws to prevent the minority from holding those posts you mentioned. Now I think you got me wrong...I am aware of these laws and how unislamic they are but this is also a faltering point of the system. It is much easier for religious parties to pass such laws because of this setup. I am sure you remember the entire religion in the passport debate in our country not too far back. The MMA did this solely to stomp on the Ahmadis. So we can clearly see the system is being abused.


Well i think it will always hold true bcoz we would never reach such an ideal situation. Just observe the countries where they tried to strictly impose secular systems despite of the majority people's will. Take Indonesia, Suhartu was a secular dictator but the majority Muslims overthrew him after along time of repression directed against the will of people. Take Iraq, Saddam was a secularist but it only led to anger, hatred and vengeance among the Shiite Muslims majority. Look at Egypt, Mubarak is having a tough time controlling the state bcoz he is acting in a way opposed to the majority's will there. Religion, be it any, has always and will always continue to play the role of a moderator in socities, and if neglected will create chaos as i said before.
As for Ahmadis, i don't have any thing personal against them, but don't u think it's a bit unfair to create a new religion but still associate yourself with someone else's religion. They made a new religion so they need to give themselves a new name too. Why call urself a Muslim, when the requirements to be a Muslim r not fulfiled. I mean i can't proclaim my self to be a messenger of the Catholics.(God forbid) and call myself a Christian. Vatican would probably curse me.
AND MMA IS NOTHING MORE THAN MULLAH-MILITARY ALLIANCE.

If Islam were practiced by everyone in the proper way we wouldn't have discussions like these; Islam teaches to one to be a GOOD Muslim...which means a GOOD person...and part of being a good person (a large part of it actually) is respecting others and yes that includes people of other religions!

The debate it seems is should Islamic Laws be put into governance? I say no...and for good reason...with the population we have there is no telling how people will twist these laws into there own favour...already we are seeing this with a Blamsphamy law which I personally find disgusting in how people have used to torment minorities, especially Christians.

I do believe religion and state should be seperate, especially in a country like ours...but that in no way says we are "less-Muslim" as some people here are putting it out to be.



As for the airport...when will it be done because I am seriously sick of that old terminal...looking at it makes me sick...honestly...

If everything is going at the schedule it's supposed to be going at, the design for the airport has been selected for some time now.. but I haven't heard any reports in the news about it. It's possible that a design has been selected but is undergoing some adjustments, taking suggestions from other plans that had been submitted.

MULLAH-MILITARY ALLIANCE.
They actually hate the military :sleepy:

Why the Mullah discussion in the "Islamabad International Airport" thread ?!

Stick to the topic please.

Apparantely over the name of the airport...We went from that to AQ Khan to Mullahs to Pakistani law and then back to mullahs...

Salam,

I thought the name of the Airport was already decided??

There were reports of the new airport as being called: Fatima Jinnah International Airport,..... which I thought sounded sooo cool..!

Kind'a like Indera Gandhi International Airport.

Pakistan's capital Islamabad would have an airport on the name of the most important woman of the history of Pakistan.. :)

Fatima Jinnah International Airport.

Peace.

I personally would like the name Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Airport more

I personally would like the name Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Airport more

I think it is a bit too long name fore an international airport...:) How about Margalla International Airport?!?

I think it is a bit too long name fore an international airport...:) How about Margalla International Airport?!?

How about Musharraf International Airport? :runaway:

that would be nice..but nah some1 more special

Looked like we are short of heroes!!! but no....

What about "Rashid Minhas International Airport". He is a jewel to our nation.

I like AQ Khan International Aiport as well. But this will gave birth to several controversies, as he is alive, yet saying he is only hero for creating nukes, i mean there were scientist involved as well, and whether the government got the guts to name it after AQK ?

WTF!

AQ Khan INTL?

Thats pathetic.. Do you understand how bad this will look?

Why are we trying to name our airport after a person who made WMDs? He is a traitor for what he did and if anything we should name our airport for someone who received the Nishan-e-Haider or Fatima Jinnah.

WTF!

AQ Khan INTL?

Thats pathetic.. Do you understand how bad this will look?

Why are we trying to name our airport after a person who made WMDs? He is a traitor for what he did and if anything we should name our airport for someone who received the Nishan-e-Haider or Fatima Jinnah.

I do not necessarily want to name the airport after AQ Khan but your 'pathetic' comment about this great Pakistani hero shows your lack of knowledge....
Try to read about his life history....how he left a luxorious life in europe and came to Pakistan on government of Pakistan offer...he started to work on only 3000 Rs., moved all his family back and so on and so forth...
what happened at the end...is not yet clear....history will tell...what the real story is....I really do not want to speculate here!

^^ Very True!

A.Q Khan is still very much a hero to me, had he not come to Pakistan and made us a nuclear capable state, we would have been suffering very badly by our neighbours to the east...Mutual assured destruction is vital to live in peace with them..

As for Airport name, how about just 'Islamabad International'?

How about "Isloo International":runaway:

^ Lol good one!

But .. why not just "Islamabad" International ??

I do not necessarily want to name the airport after AQ Khan but your 'pathetic' comment about this great Pakistani hero shows your lack of knowledge....
My great lack of knowledge? How so? A Pakistani hero? The man was a traitor...He was smuggling our crap to other countries. We all know what happened and we all know he commited treason so what speculations are you talking about?


A.Q Khan is still very much a hero to me, had he not come to Pakistan and made us a nuclear capable state, we would have been suffering very badly by our neighbours to the east...Mutual assured destruction is vital to live in peace with them..
Actually, what about the other scientists who did not smuggle our information outside of the country? Dont they deserve recognition? Bhutto was hell bent on getting nuclear power and he would have turned to China if AQ Khan could not SMUGGLE in the parts from the Dutch.

WTF!

AQ Khan INTL?

Thats pathetic.. Do you understand how bad this will look?

Why are we trying to name our airport after a person who made WMDs? He is a traitor for what he did and if anything we should name our airport for someone who received the Nishan-e-Haider or Fatima Jinnah.

Well United it is not at all a fair comment. I don't get how Pakistan's most well protected man, whose security was supposed to be greater than even the President or PM could have run a nuclear cartel? Believe me ASF prohibits even photography at our airports, so how could Mr AQ Khan transfer centrifuges into an Iranian C-130 at Chaklala without our ISI knowing it, who even keep an accurate record of number of sheep that die in India every year! Some may think he is a traitor but a large number also think that he is just an innocent space goat and they have valid points too. Even Musharraf calls him a hero because he knows that man is loved still by the masses.

For the airport how about AYUB INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, for being pioneer of development in Pakistan. but strictly ISLAMABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT is just fine.

Well United it is not at all a fair comment. I don't get how Pakistan's most well protected man, whose security was supposed to be greater than even the President or PM could have run a nuclear cartel? Believe me ASF prohibits even photography at our airports, so how could Mr AQ Khan transfer centrifuges into an Iranian C-130 at Chaklala without our ISI knowing it, who even keep an accurate record of number of sheep that die in India every year! Some may think he is a traitor but a large number also think that he is just an innocent space goat and they have valid points too. Even Musharraf calls him a hero because he knows that man is loved still by the masses.

Well it does not take very much to run a nuclear cartel...You and me both know that he could have just paid of his security. And ISI was the security for him... The man is clearly not a scapegoat because the US singled him out and not the Pakistani government. Our government denied earlier claims but then the US became specific. Musharraf and others only call him a hero because they know that the masses appreciate him. The people though who worked on the tech other than AQ Khan are the real hero's yet I bet you cant even name me one of them. By the way Anwar Ali Khan was also in on this plan with AQ Khan yet there is no solid evidence to stick that one on him.


For the airport how about AYUB INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, for being pioneer of development in Pakistan. but strictly ISLAMABAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT is just fine.
I think Fatima Jinnah deserves the airports name to be named after her because afterall she is the mother of the nation.

Well it does not take very much to run a nuclear cartel...You and me both know that he could have just paid of his security. And ISI was the security for him... The man is clearly not a scapegoat because the US singled him out and not the Pakistani government. Our government denied earlier claims but then the US became specific. Musharraf and others only call him a hero because they know that the masses appreciate him. The people though who worked on the tech other than AQ Khan are the real hero's yet I bet you cant even name me one of them. By the way Anwar Ali Khan was also in on this plan with AQ Khan yet there is no solid evidence to stick that one on him.
I think AQ Khan is a hero bcoz it takes a dedicated ladership to achieve a goal, and AQ Khan provided that. Believe me whole Pakistani governments were involved in the name of ISLAMIC BROTHERHOOD. And the US singled out the whole Pakistani Nuclear controllers for proliferation and they still continue to do it(recently, US Congressional sub-committe did so) and those controllers include every one from KRL to ISI, Army, President and PM.
Even if Iranian planes took the centrifuges, just look at the scope of failure. ISI, FIA, ASF, ARMY, AIR FORCE, CAA,`Ministry of Defence and SO ON, all failed. How many could have been bribed, do u think. This means every head of our major agencies or department is a corrupt individual? If so it directly implies the whole system is responsible not just Qadeer.


I think Fatima Jinnah deserves the airports name to be named after her because afterall she is the mother of the nation.

Well, she certainly deserves it!

I think AQ Khan is a hero bcoz it takes a dedicated ladership to achieve a goal, and AQ Khan provided that. Believe me whole Pakistani governments were involved in the name of ISLAMIC BROTHERHOOD. And the US singled out the whole Pakistani Nuclear controllers for proliferation and they still continue to do it(recently, US Congressional sub-committe did so) and those controllers include every one from KRL to ISI, Army, President and PM.
Even if Iranian planes took the centrifuges, just look at the scope of failure. ISI, FIA, ASF, ARMY, AIR FORCE, CAA,`Ministry of Defence and SO ON, all failed. How many could have been bribed, do u think. This means every head of our major agencies or department is a corrupt individual? If so it directly implies the whole system is responsible not just Qadeer.
You must be pointing towards the leadership of Bhutto then since he is the one who really pushed it through. As for the Pakistani government if they really were involved then dont you think the nukes would have found their way to Saudi Arabia first since they financed our research and they wanted nuclear silo's built in their country? How come it was not transferred to them? And why the hell would they transfer it to Libya? No strategic importance to Pakistan. As for your claim that was not the CIA but a sub-commitee that was full of shit using pressure tactics to give up AQ Khan. I think you are underestimating AQ Khan's power in that case then...It is a fact that ISI helped him travel but you can not blame this on the army, airforce, ASF, FIA, or the CAA! Dont you think ISI could have just bypassed all these safeguards with their power? They are practically a rogue government. No one knows anything about the goddamn organization because they are no checks on them.

Lets get back to the topic though...

AQ Khan is not a wise choice for a name of the airport because it will give us negative media attension...

AQ Khan is not a wise choice for a name of the airport because it will give us negative media attension...
Well, i agree, it would never be a good choice. Many less controversial figures after whom our airports can be named. Fatima Jinnah tops the list.

NOW NOTHING EXCEPT NIIAP!

Fatima Jinnah International

Excellent name for a airport...

Without her they would be no Pakistan or even a Jinnah.

How about "Isloo International":runaway:

:hahaha: good one!

I still support Sir Syed International.

Without him, we wouldnt even have the idea of a separate nationhood in this subcontinent and would have been stuck behind in the middle ages completely without any education.

And I still think the mother of the nation deserves a international airport named after her.

I remember people on the forum were debating the name of this site last year... Im really sick and tired of this project... Why DONT THEY START!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Salam,

I think we already have an airbase on the name of Rashid Minhas.... Minhas Airbase or some thing.

Also, Musharraf Int is a little too much for now. May be, after his era, Gwadar Intl can be named so, but not Islamabad.

Sir Syed, was "TECHNICALLY" not a Pakistani. His era is pre-Pakistan.

Fatima Jinnah Intl is a beautiful name, as it sounds like having "parity" with Indera Gandhi Intl. Obviously, we don't have to do it just because of that.

But Fatima Jinnah was also a worth-mentioning character in Pakistani Politics, and has a great role in Pakistan Movement. Moreover, it is the only female politician that is renouned that much in the movement.

My 2 cents.... though.

Fatima Jinnah International Airport.. :)

Peace.

^^
Agreed...

Salam,

I think we already have an airbase on the name of Rashid Minhas.... Minhas Airbase or some thing.

Also, Musharraf Int is a little too much for now. May be, after his era, Gwadar Intl can be named so, but not Islamabad.

Sir Syed, was "TECHNICALLY" not a Pakistani. His era is pre-Pakistan.

Fatima Jinnah Intl is a beautiful name, as it sounds like having "parity" with Indera Gandhi Intl. Obviously, we don't have to do it just because of that.

But Fatima Jinnah was also a worth-mentioning character in Pakistani Politics, and has a great role in Pakistan Movement. Moreover, it is the only female politician that is renouned that much in the movement.

My 2 cents.... though.

Fatima Jinnah International Airport.. :)

Peace.


Good arguments and well presented case :) I agree too!

WTF!

AQ Khan INTL?

Thats pathetic.. Do you understand how bad this will look?

Why are we trying to name our airport after a person who made WMDs? He is a traitor for what he did and if anything we should name our airport for someone who received the Nishan-e-Haider or Fatima Jinnah.


UnitedPakistan
First i think AQK int'l airport doesn't look bad!! i like it but somehow will never vote for it ;)
Saying AQK a traitor i think its too much!!!!


MerijanPakistan is right there is certainly some base name after Rashid Minhas, so we cannot name it.

Fatima Jinnah Int'l Airport doesn't look attractive enough. What about
Liaqat Ali Khan Int'l Airport.

There are quite a number of Air bases in PAF named after the individualds like

Mushaf Air Base Previously Sargodha Air Base
Minhas Air Base Previously Kamra Air Base
Rafique Air Base Previously Sharkot Air Base
Faisal Air Base (Karachi)
Shahbaz Air Base (Jacobabad)

We don't need to go into complications by naming the airport AQK, in my opinion Islamabad International Or Isloo International will be the perfect name for the Capital and further we can name the Arrival/Departure terminals on some of the names mentioned above

If the father of the nation has a airport named after him shouldnt the mother of the nation also have a airport named after her?

Without her Jinnah would have probaly never have been able to fight for Pakistan. Without her Pakistan would be a mess upto this day. It is because of her that we were able to handle the refugees and the mass of people.

Saying that Sir Syed was pre-partition doesnt make any sense. He is still our hero. If we dont respect him, who do we expect will? the Indians?? We need to remember that our history in the subcontinent doesnt just start with the creation of Pakistan.

Also, I am not dishonoring the role of Fatima Jinnah in the creation of Pakistan. No doubt she played a very important role. I bet there were also a lot of other very important people in the time of the Pakistan movement as well which would deserve a mention. Muhammad Ali Jauhar anyone?

My whole argument for the support of Sir Syed is that he is a historic personality. He was the one who saved us all from sinking into blame and mistrust after the burden of the War of Independence of 1857 was put on our shoulders. He was the one who put in the seeds of enlightenment for our nation by urging us to not quit educating ourselves just because the British had taken over. Also, were it not for the illustrious education institutions he established, a lot of our national leaders would not have played the parts they did. Because most of them studied from those institutes.

I havent seen any major thing named after him yet in Pakistan. With the exception of the Sir Syed Univ in Karachi, but that is a private institution.

Glad to see that Islamabad will get a new airport.

IT SURE NEEDS IT SINCE THE CURRENT ONE REALLY SUCKS!

Peter K

Names

Fatima Jinnah is a nice name...but then again we already have Jinnah International in Karachi...so I wouldn't choose it...Sir Syed Ali Khan or Rashid Minhas sounds really good...

We already have Minhas Airbase...

FJI-Fatima Jinnah International

Saying that Sir Syed was pre-partition doesnt make any sense. He is still our hero. If we dont respect him, who do we expect will? the Indians?? We need to remember that our history in the subcontinent doesnt just start with the creation of Pakistan.

Also, I am not dishonoring the role of Fatima Jinnah in the creation of Pakistan. No doubt she played a very important role. I bet there were also a lot of other very important people in the time of the Pakistan movement as well which would deserve a mention. Muhammad Ali Jauhar anyone?

My whole argument for the support of Sir Syed is that he is a historic personality. He was the one who saved us all from sinking into blame and mistrust after the burden of the War of Independence of 1857 was put on our shoulders. He was the one who put in the seeds of enlightenment for our nation by urging us to not quit educating ourselves just because the British had taken over. Also, were it not for the illustrious education institutions he established, a lot of our national leaders would not have played the parts they did. Because most of them studied from those institutes.

I havent seen any major thing named after him yet in Pakistan. With the exception of the Sir Syed Univ in Karachi, but that is a private institution.
Very True! Sir Syed Ahmad Khan is also our national hero but it's also true that his era was pre-Pakistan, I don't see any controversy here..

Gwadar airport (with careful planning it can become a regional hub) is also coming up along with Islamabad airport, we can name one after Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and the other after Fatima Jinnah.

How about this! ^^ :)

LMAO...And please no Musharraf International until he is long dead.

Whats the problem with "Islamabad International Airport" ?? But if i had to chose it would be either Liaqat Ali International or Fatima Jinnah Intl.

Who knows when this airport is made, but as long as it meets the need for future generations and can accommodate the latest aircraft in the industry. At this rate i think not even our future generations will see it

Liaqat Ali?

The man was a supporter of feudals to strengthen his chances at elections after Jinnah died. I would say hell no to that one...

Salam,

:)

Well Sir Syed Ahmad International for Gwadar sounds good GumNaam! I never thought of that name for Gwadar. I think Gwadar would be a wonderful and up-to-date city, and naming its airport after some body who waked muslims up from a deep sleep into the era of Aligarh university is a brilliant idea!!

For Islamabad, i am not sure, ... but there were some rumors in the papers that it has already been decided as Fatima Jinnah International... which i thought was cool.

Peace.

so far the choices are

Fatima Jinnah Int'l Airport
Liaqat Ali khan Int'l Airport
Islamabad Int'l Airport

so far the choices are

Fatima Jinnah Int'l Airport
Liaqat Ali khan Int'l Airport
Islamabad Int'l Airport

These sound nice but how about...Aziz Bhatti International....after all he is also a hero yaar....first to get Nishan-e-Haidar....

Saying that Sir Syed was pre-partition doesnt make any sense. He is still our hero. If we dont respect him, who do we expect will? the Indians?? We need to remember that our history in the subcontinent doesnt just start with the creation of Pakistan.


My whole argument for the support of Sir Syed is that he is a historic personality. He was the one who saved us all from sinking into blame and mistrust after the burden of the War of Independence of 1857 was put on our shoulders.

just to clear things up, India doesn't need Pakistan to honor a Muslim before it does. Just like Pakistan has named some weapons after Tipu Sultan, similarly, he is remembered as a great hero in our country. In fact, I have been to his old capital city and his maqbara. The AMU is still a top-notch university.

Also, when you say the blame of 1857 was put on 'us', I am assuming you mean the Muslims? I would really appreciate if somebody could PM me with some reference articles about what Pakistan's history text books say about the first war of independence, or just a line or two. thanks.

I think Muhammad Bin Qasim would be a better name for the Gwadar airport considering his legacy in the Makran region (yes i already know about the port). Or alternatively, the name of the Omani Sultan in charge of Oman whenGwadar was handed over to Pakistan.

If the father of the nation has a airport named after him shouldnt the mother of the nation also have a airport named after her?

Without her Jinnah would have probaly never have been able to fight for Pakistan. Without her Pakistan would be a mess upto this day. It is because of her that we were able to handle the refugees and the mass of people.

Pakistan IS a mess........isnt it? but I hope we can clear this mess in this generation.My vote is for 'Islamabad International'

^

You know what I meant...

I think Muhammad Bin Qasim would be a better name for the Gwadar airport considering his legacy in the Makran region (yes i already know about the port). Or alternatively, the name of the Omani Sultan in charge of Oman whenGwadar was handed over to Pakistan.


Why are we so fond of naming our stuff for names of people who dont have as much national importance?
I have already come across so many things that have been named after King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. Faisalabad, Faisal Mosque, Shahrah-e-Faisal in Karachi, I am pretty sure more things such. I dont understand the redundancy.
I would vehemently oppose Gwadar's anything to be named after an Arabian prince.

Also, since Port Qasim has already been ascribed to Muhammad Bin Qasim (Karachi being his point of entrance into the subcontinent,) its redundant to use his name again as well.

How about we name it after Edhi? Or does the person have to be dead to name the airport after him/her?

OMG!
you guys r soo touchy!

i believe ppl r just passing time on this issue of the name... well for me , let the thing start and we can always think of a name later. My vote, however, is for Islamabad Int'l airport.

Anyone with news on the airport?

These sound nice but how about...Aziz Bhatti International....after all he is also a hero yaar....first to get Nishan-e-Haidar....

Following Shaheeds were awarded Nishan-e-haider. How we can prefer one on another ?? difficult, i suggested earlier Rashid minhas because his shahadat was post war and he was young blood..


Captain Mohammad Sarwar Shaheed
Major Tufail Mohammad Shaheed
Major Raja Aziz Bhatti Shaheed
Major Mohammad Akram Shaheed
Pilot Officer Rashid Minhas Shaheed
Major Shabir Sharif Shaheed
Jawan Sowar Mohammad Hussain Shaheed
Lance Naik Mohammad Mahfuz Shaheed
Captain Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed
Havaldaar Lalak Jan Shaheed

^

How many times must it be repeated we already have Minhas Airbase!

Why the heck are you guys even discussing this petty issue? Name it anything! Just get the damn thing built, I say!

Could we please now stop discussing this lame name issue?

Why the heck are you guys even discussing this petty issue? Name it anything! Just get the damn thing built, I say!

Could we please now stop discussing this lame name issue?
Well i think its a good pastime activity.....
I m completely fed up with the slow pace of major projects in Pakistan, be it NIIAP, M-1, Dams or anything. All we have got to listen is so and so project is gonna be undertaken but only some of those ever materialize. A number of N.American and European carriers r willing to start operations from ISB but they r being with held either to protect PIA(which has completely lost KHI to Gulf carriers) or due to non-availability of slots at ISB. This airport really got the potential 2 become a hub.

i think i found the official website for the project:
www.niia.com.pk

Great find!


بھت اچھا! ۔

Sunday, June 18, 2006

New Islamabad airport to be named Gandhara

ISLAMABAD: A planned international airport in Islamabad is likely to be named the Gandhara International Airport, after one of the oldest civilisations in the region, Daily Times has learnt.

“The name for the new Islamabad airport, for which the ground is likely to be broken by the end of this year, has been proposed keeping in view the historical and cultural background of the area where it will be constructed,” sources said. Officials believe the proposed name would help promote a “soft image” of Pakistan abroad, sources added. The Civil Aviation Authority has acquired about 1,300 acres of land for the new airport near Fateh Jang. zulfiqar ghuman

Awesome choice! Gandhara International Airport, Islamabad.

Keeps the history of the area in mind, and will keep us culturally aware always. Excellent.

I guess this ends all debates about the name...

Bastards made us debate for nothing...

Well, its better than all the names suggested by us.

I still think we need a Fatima Jinnah International

AAY YUCK......... IDON'T LIKE IT AT ALL. I don't know why but every time i read Gandhara, Gandhi comes to my mind...
FJIA was loads better.

Hmm

Nothing would be wrong with a Ghandi international considering his dedication for Indian and Pakistani co-existance after both the countries split. He even wanted to move to Pakistan to push for better relations. Sometimes it is better to be open minded than closed minded.

Hah.. well Haram sounds too much like Haraam, so we should change the name of Masjid-al-Haram to something else.

That was sarcasm for those who didn't catch it. :P Ghandara is nice, I like it, now let's build this thing and hope it compliments the Islamabad we hope to see.

AAY YUCK......... IDON'T LIKE IT AT ALL. I don't know why but every time i read Gandhara, Gandhi comes to my mind...
FJIA was loads better.


^^ perhaps you never had a chance to visit the awe inspiring ruins at Taxila or see some of the beautiful statuary carved on the mountains on the roads to Swat...

Also, UNITEDPAKISTAN, ugly avatar man! your old one was better. Chewbaca aint cuttin it!

Ooops... sorry guys to dissapoint u by my stupid comments. I need 2 clear that i was not having a go on Gandhiji and i also respect the person as any Indian does. But i still think that FJIA was loads better. And yes i have visited Taxila, swat etc. and really admire these places.
As for Mr. Sikandar, Haram and Masjid al Haraam are 2 different things. Masjid Al Haraam is named so bcoz many acts that we do in our daily life r prohibited and are Islamically illegal(Haraam) in this sacred mosque. for example- killing insects, plucking flowers etc. That is why it is MASJID AL HARA'AM.
As used in Islamic urban planning, the word haram means "inviolate zone", an important aspect of urban planning in Muslim civilization. Such protected areas were sanctuaries, or places where contending parties could settle disputes peacefully. Towns were usually built near a river which provided drinking and domestic water (upstream) and carried away waste and sewage (downstream, usually underground, unlike most cities in Europe in medieval times). Muslims claim to have introduced the idea of carrying capacity, and clearly sometimes did limit the number of families in any given town. The harams were typically positioned to ensure access to parkland and nature (which were given another name, hima), to restrict urban sprawl, protect water-courses and watersheds and oases. In this respect the rules strongly resembled modern zoning laws, with the same purposes.

Thank you for going out of your way to paste some information on that from Wikipedia, but as I said, I was being sarcastic and the point I was making was one name shouldn't suffer just because a less attractive name sounds like it. Besides, there's already hundreds of places in Pakistan with the Jinnah name in it, and there's also a Fatima Jinnah park in the middle of Islamabad.

Thank you for going out of your way to paste some information on that from Wikipedia, but as I said, I was being sarcastic and the point I was making was one name shouldn't suffer just because a less attractive name sounds like it. Besides, there's already hundreds of places in Pakistan with the Jinnah name in it, and there's also a Fatima Jinnah park in the middle of Islamabad.
No problem at all.....
Gandhara is fine, i agree.

Hey.. Shouldn't the thread's name be changed to Gandhara International Airport, as it is now official.

Salam ZK,

It is not official, yet. The news says: "likely to be named", just as it was likely to be named, and proposed, as Madar-e-Millat Fatima Jinnah International Airport.... back in Jamali's era.

http://www.pakistanlink.com/headlines/sept03/22/01.html
http://www.urdutimes.com/englishnews/2003/09/23/en8/

Lets wait and see, what would the official name at inaugeration be...!

Peace.

When is it STARTING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?!?!?!!?!?

When is it STARTING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?!?!?!!?!?
Just chill out! Pakistan has a history of projects getting long delays. So if CAA wants GIAP to be completed by 2010, then according to Pakistani standards it is bound to be completed by 2013-14, so u can expect ground breaking by 2008-09.

Monday, June 26, 2006

Privatisation process will not be reversed: PM

* Aziz pledges to implement SC verdict ‘in letter and spirit’
* Rejects opposition’s demand for dismissal of Sindh govt

By Shahzad Raza

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said on Sunday that the government will not reverse the process of privatisation in the country.

In the first top-level official reaction to the recent Supreme Court (SC) judgement which struck down the privatisation of the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), Aziz said that the government respected the judgment of the apex court and would implement it “in letter and spirit”. Talking to journalists at Prime Minister’s House, he said that the Supreme Court had also upheld the privatisation process and the Privatisation Ordinance, under which public units were privatised. “We will go ahead with the privatisation process under existing law,” he said.

Asked whether the government would act against certain parties involved in the privatisation of the PSM privatisation, Aziz said that any decision would be taken after examining the detailed judgment of the court. Regarding the March stock market crash, the prime minister said that the government had introduced “major reforms” to the stock market, which was “an integral part of the country’s economy”.

He said that the government had sent the summary of formation of the Council of Common Interest (CCI) to President General Pervez Musharraf for approval. The federal government had nominated four federal ministers as its representatives in the summary, but did not reveal their names. The CCI would be notified once approved by the president, and would be summoned soon after the notification, he said. He rejected the opposition’s demand of the dismissal of the Sindh coalition government and the governor of the province. “The Sindh government is an elected government. It is representative of the people. There is no justification for the opposition’s demand. The MQM is our coalition partner,” he said, adding that the opposition must avoid “politics of negativism”.

He said that any decision regarding the two offices held by President Musharraf would be taken in accordance with the constitution. He said that he did not see any reason to change the existing coalition between the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) and its allies. Referring to energy talks between Pakistan and the United States starting today (Monday), Aziz said that Pakistan would look to other countries for cooperation in case the US did not offer nuclear energy. He said that peaceful use of nuclear energy was Pakistan’s “genuine right”.

He said that Pakistan remained committed to result-oriented dialogue with India. The atmosphere for talks between the two sides was getting better but both countries needed to move forward to dispute resolution mechanisms, he said.

Earlier, in a surprise visit to his constituency in Fateh Jang, the prime minister announced that the design for a new international airport in the area would be approved next month and the construction of the airport would start by the end of the year.

Source: Daily Times

i ahve been hearing construction begins next month on this airport.

are there any renders of this project?

I think progress on this project is going TOO slowly. The deadline should be set to late 2008 or early 2009 instead of 2010. The govt needs to get their arses moving on this project!

Yeah the design was supposed to be selected in mid-June.. I took a look at the "greenfield airport" they're building in Bangalore, India and boy is it ugly. Of course, the most important thing is functionality.. but design has got to count for something.. $300 million is not a lot for a greenfield airport so I hope they're able to make the most of it.

BTW anyone who's confused as to the difference between greenfield and brownfield, it's simple.. greenfield is basically a development which takes place on undisturbed land which has never been built on before, while brownfield refers to replacing/renewing existing structures or demolishing structures and building on top of them. Greenfield is usually more expensive because supporting infrastructure needs to be built as well (electricity/sewerage/roads, etc..).

Honestly, considering the way they are handleing the project i don´t think it will be ready before 2010. Tender for the Terminal and the one for Airport Infrastructure should have been finished by September 2005 and still have´nt been awarded, as far as I know.

Anyone has any news on that?

ISLAMABAD (PPI) – The construction of $300 million (Rs 18 billion) new Islamabad airport would begin in next three months.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) officials told this agency that the contract for construction of would be awarded by January 2007.
Advertisements for expression of interests have already been issued and process of short listing is in progress. The new airport is scheduled to be completed before Dec 2009.
The contract agreement with the selected consultant from USA has been signed while selection of the design consultant is in process.
CAA Board is currently reviewing different designs of the new Islamabad airport submitted by five international firms of consultants and architects.
Representatives of these firms have given detailed briefings to the CAA board regarding their respective designs. The board is likely to approve a design very soon.
The groundbreaking ceremony of the new Islamabad airport would be held in a month or so.
CAA was supposed to approve the design of the new airport by May this year. But the process was delayed due to certain reasons.
The CAA has already hired the services of Louis Berger Group of the US in association with Pakistani consulting firm, ECIL, for undertaking development of the new Islamabad airport.
The new airport site is located on 3,200 acres acquired by the CAA in the 1980s at Pind Ranjha near Tarnol-Fatehjang Road, some 20kms from Zero Point Islamabad and 23kms from Saddar, Rawalpindi.
The site of the new airport would be linked with the motorway and national highways.
The CAA is determined to develop the new airport according to international standards to serve as a major hub for all aviation activities in the region.
The new airport will be the first green field airport in Pakistan. It would comprise a contemporary state-of-the-art passenger terminal building, control tower, runway with a provision of a secondary runway, taxiways, apron, cargo complex, and hangar together with all the necessary infrastructure and ancillary facilities.
It would cater to the requirements of latest generation of modern passenger aircraft.
The new airport will have a modular design to handle 6.5 million passengers per annum and 100,000 metric tons cargo per annum.
Being a new airport, a significant portion of the land has been earmarked for commercial purposes such as duty-free shops, hotel and convention centre, air malls, business centre, food courts, leisure and recreational facilities.

^^^how can they perform the ground breaking in a month, while award for the contract will be in jan 2007?

i jst hope the create a new design for the airport more towards international standards ....dont want to see a new airport that suks in design and that is probably gona take a lifetime to be built