A cargo plane of British airline Virgin Atlantic landed in Lahore on Tuesday, carrying staff and equipment ahead of beginning direct flights to Pakistan from December 13. A cargo plane of the Crawley-based British airline will bring more staff members and necessary equipment to Lahore on December 9. The British airline, Virgin Atlantic, has announced to commence its flight operation for Pakistan from December 13 which will further facilitate passengers travelling from the United Kingdom (UK) to Pakistan. Virgin Atlantic is all set to begin flight operations for Pakistan as the British airline will use modern Airbus A-332 aircraft to continue a weekly eight-flight operation to Lahore and Islamabad. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) released a flight schedule of the airline which stated the first flight will fly from London on December 13 and it will land on December 14 morning at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport. The airline had reportedly sought permission to operate flights from Manchester and London. However, Pakistan’s aviation authority did not permit the airline to operate flights in Pakistan from Manchester. The airline had earlier announced three routes to Pakistan from the UK including London-Lahore, London-Islamabad and Manchester-Islamabad. Other than Virgin Atlantic, British Airways had also announced plans to operate direct flights from Lahore, Pakistan to London Heathrow. According to a schedule, the airline will operate direct flights from Lahore, Pakistan to London Heathrow four days a week. Earlier in September, the federal cabinet had allowed Crawley-based British airline, Virgin Atlantic, to operate direct flights between Pakistan and London.