Dubai's low cost airline flydubai will commence operations to Pakistan's financial capital Karachi on June 21, it was announced yesterday.

The daily service will depart Dubai as FZ333 at 8.15am and arrive in Karachi at 11.25am. The flight will return as FZ334 at 12.10pm and arrive in Dubai at 1.20pm.

The company in a press statement issued yesterday, said one-way fares to Karachi will be from Dh300. The fare is inclusive of one piece of hand luggage. Tickets went on sale yesterday through the airline's online channel, www.flydubai.com, call centres and travel agents.

This is the airline's sixth new route within a span of four weeks taking its route network to 19 destinations.

Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai, said Karachi would play an important role in expanding flydubai's reach and will make a significant difference to Pakistani expatriates working in the UAE. "There are currently more than 700,000 expatriates from Pakistan working in the UAE and an extra opportunity for them to travel back home has to be good news. We are in the business of bringing more people together more often and we can see the Karachi route being a very busy one indeed," he said. "Pakistan is already a very close trading partner with the UAE and there is always the potential for even more commercial ties."