Bhoja Air
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Airline |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Founder | Farooq Bhoja |
| Defunct | 2012 |
| Fate | License revoked after crash; ceased operations |
| Headquarters | Karachi , Pakistan |
Area served | Pakistan, United Arab Emirates (former) |
Key people | Saleem Ahmad Kashmiri (leader in 1998), Arshad Jalil (Managing Director, owner 80% from 2012) |
| Products | Scheduled domestic passenger flights, some international flights (1998–2000) |
| Owner | Bhoja Group of Companies; Arshad Jalil (80% from 2012), Farooq Bhoja (5% from 2012) |
Bhoja Air () was an airline from Pakistan headquartered in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Established in 1993, it operated a modest network of scheduled domestic passenger flights. Due to financial setbacks, the airline halted its services between 2000 and 2012. After briefly resuming operations, the crash of Bhoja Air Flight 213 near Rawalpindi just 44 days later led to the revocation of its operating license and the termination of all activities in April 2012.
History
Operations commenced for Bhoja Air on 7 November 1993, initially connecting domestic destinations such as Karachi, Lahore, and Quetta using a dry-leased Boeing 737-200. It was notable for being the first private Pakistani carrier to utilize Western-built aircraft. Owned by the Bhoja Group of Companies, its main office was located in Karachi. In 1996, Bhoja Air collaborated with the handling service provider OGDENS at Karachi, which had the capacity to manage large aircraft including Boeing 747s.
That same year, it took over its affiliate company Pakistan Aviators and Aviation at Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore, along with acquiring a hotel facility to accommodate passenger layovers.
On 24 January 1998, under the leadership of Saleem Ahmad Kashmiri, Bhoja Air initiated international flights from Karachi to Dubai. The airline expanded its U.A.E. connections from key Pakistani cities but ceased operations in 2000 due to financial difficulties. Despite this suspension, its license from the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority remained active, and it maintained office operations in Karachi.
The airline recommenced services towards the end of 2011, officially relaunching on 6 March 2012 following its acquisition by Arshad Jalil from founder Farooq Bhoja. After this transaction, Arshad Jalil assumed an 80% ownership stake as Managing Director; the remaining shares were held by his family and minority investors, including Farooq Bhoja who retained a five percent interest.
On 20 April 2012, Bhoja Air’s Flight 213 crashed while flying from Karachi to Islamabad, resulting in the fatalities of all 127 passengers and crew members on board.
Closure
In the aftermath of the Flight 213 disaster, Bhoja Air ceased operations for a second time on 22 April, merely six weeks after its relaunch. The accident reduced their fleet size from three aircraft to two, violating Pakistani regulations that mandate a minimum fleet of three planes. With one plane lost in the crash and another grounded for maintenance or other reasons, only a single aircraft remained functional. Consequently, on 29 May, after a grace period following the crash, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) revoked Bhoja Air’s operating license.
Although there were intentions to lease an additional aircraft and restart flights by mid-August with assistance from an unnamed international carrier, these plans never came to fruition. By July 2012, Bhoja Air disposed of its remaining two airplanes and fully terminated all employee contracts, marking the complete shutdown of its operations.
Destinations
At the time when services were halted in April 2012, Bhoja Air operated flights to the following locations:[1]
- Pakistan
- Islamabad - Benazir Bhutto International Airport
- Karachi - Jinnah International Airport
- Lahore - Allama Iqbal International Airport
- Multan - Multan International Airport
- Faisalabad - Faisalabad International Airport
Bhoja Air had also intended to introduce a domestic service to Sukkur, which was listed on their booking platform but ultimately never launched.
Fleet
When operations ceased in April 2012, the Bhoja Air fleet consisted of the following aircraft:
| Aircraft | Quantity | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-200 | 2 | One aircraft was lost in the Flight 213 accident |
| Total | 2 |
Previous fleet
Following the loss of a 737-200, Bhoja Air temporarily added a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 through Star Air Aviation to support its operations. Two more leased 737-200s were scheduled but never delivered due to the halt in service. The airline also operated the Yakovlev Yak-42 at an earlier stage.
Accidents and incidents
On 20 April 2012, a Boeing 737-200 flying as Bhoja Air Flight 213 with 127 occupants crashed near Chaklala during its final approach from Karachi to Islamabad, resulting in no survivors. Witnesses observed the plane engulfed in flames prior to impact, potentially caused by lightning. Preliminary investigations indicated that the crew faced extreme weather challenges, including wind shear. The aircraft was dry-leased from South African airline Comair and had been incorporated into Bhoja Air’s fleet in February 2012. After this tragedy, Chairman Farouk Bhoja was added to Pakistan’s Exit Control List.
- ↑ Bhoja destinations Archived 2012-04-20 at the Wayback Machine