The Pakistan International Airline had promised to bring back more than 25,000 stranded Pakistanis from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates through over 100 flights in the upcoming week.

According to the airline’s spokesperson, Abdullah Khan, there is a lot of pressure on the national carrier by the nationals abroad to take them back. “The flights are immediately booked online through agents or calls.

“Due to this a lot of people fail to get tickets for themselves,” he explained, adding that this is why the national carrier took special permission from the government for a greater number of flights.

In the upcoming week, the airline will bring back 10,000 people from Saudi Arabia and 15,000 from UAE.

“Most of the PIA offices abroad are closed due to the lockdown,” Khan said. “Tickets can be bought online from their website, through agents or from the airline’s offices in Pakistan.”

He added that with these new flights, it’s expected that the pressure on the airlines will reduce.