Story ID: 
Flight handler Hadid opens office in Karachi
By: AIN Staff
Caption: Hadid International Services has expanded its aviation support network with a new branch office located at Karachi Airport in Pakistan, the farthest easter
Word Count: 369
Hadid International Services has expanded its aviation support network with a new branch office located at Karachi Airport in Pakistan, the farthest eastern point in the company’s chain–thus far.“Hadid’s Karachi branch office will be utilized to provide our customers in the Asian region with quality and unmatched local support,” said Baha Hadid, president and founder of Hadid International Services. “From permits to fuel, ground-handling to charter brokering, Hadid International Services is committed to delivering high-quality flight support services.”Mohammed Abulibdeh, CEO of Hadid, said the company opened the Karachi office after the government of Pakistan passed a new regulation that the necessary overflight and landing permits must be acquired through a local agent. “We want to keep our customers happy and assure everything will be met with satisfaction,” he explained.Abulibdeh said there is “quite good movement” of air traffic through Pakistani airspace, much of it going to the Far East and sometimes to Europe, but political issues on the ground have nothing to do with aviation overflight. He said it is not very important to land in Pakistan unless an operator has a specific reason to go to Karachi or Islamabad.For clients that need to land at those airports, the company said, they are deemed “safe enough,” with the Pakistani government taking “extreme measures to take care of foreigners and make it convenient for us.” Founded in 1981, Hadid International Services (Booth No. 877) offers a diverse array of aviation services such as permits, charter, handling, fueling, slots and transportation. The International Air Transport Association has made overtures for the company to create a “Hadid academy” to teach others how to provide aviation services. The company said it is under consideration.Headquartered in Dubai, Hadid also operates from offices in Damascus, Sharjah, London, Hamburg, Moscow, Benghazi and now Karachi, as well as a worldwide network of representative offices. Hadid International considers Pakistan the gateway to the Far East, and readily admits to eyeing expansion in that direction and is considering China, the Philippines, Singapore, even India and Bangladesh. “We are still studying the market and we want to do something in the Far East,” said Issa Zuriqi, regional manager for the Gulf Cooperation Council region.