Director General FIA Raja Rafat Mukhtar visited Islamabad International Airport alongside Director Islamabad Zone Shehzad Nadeem Bukhari to review immigration operations and service delivery. The delegation examined daily processing at a facility handling 94 international flights and more than 10,000 international passengers every day.
FIA Immigration officials noted that the unit operates in three shifts to manage peak flows, with 15 counters active for departures and 13 for arrivals. During busy periods, simultaneous flight arrivals can create temporary crowding; despite this, teams achieved an average throughput of about 4 passengers per minute, and on 13 January cleared 2,400 passengers within a single hour.
The review acknowledged that adverse weather and technical faults at times contribute to flight delays and consequent congestion. To address these challenges, FIA Immigration is maintaining close coordination with PAA and has approved the installation of a queue management system and a phased implementation of e-gates to speed processing.
Additional measures announced include an increase in FIA staff, the launch of a pre-departure mobile app to streamline passenger information, and the deployment of dedicated queue staff to guide travelers through immigration. FIA Immigration said these steps aim to improve passenger flow, reduce waiting times, and enhance operational resilience at Islamabad International Airport.
