The closure of Pakistan of his airspace to Indian Airlines on Thursday is forcing carriers to alter some routes that link India with Europe, North America, Central and the Middle East Asia.
Indian carriers, including Air India, Indigo, Akasa Air and Spicejet, must now fly more time, and therefore more expensive, flights on some routes to the west. The detour could push some flights to add a fuel replenishment stop or cancel certain routes completely.
Indigo, the largest airline in the country for market share, said that some international flights are affected, while Air India some of its flights to or from North America, Europe and the Middle East Take an extended alternative route. Both statements were made last week on the social media platform X.
Air India did not respond to the CNBC consultation with respect to the number of affected routes. Indigo has declared that about 50 routes can be affected, while flights to Almath, Kazakh and Tashkent, Uzbekistan, have temporarily suspended the leg.
The closure of the airspace occurs in the midst of Tit-For-Tat reactions of neighbors with nuclear weapons, after the murder of 26 tourists in the picturesque city of Pahalgam in the state of Jammu and Kashmir in the northwest of India.
India has linked the massacre with the Pakistani militants, which Pakistan denies. Pakistan has requested a “neutral” investigation into the incident that has revived tensions on the long -term territory claimed by both countries.
New routes and stop for refueling
Air India Flight A1101 from New Delhi to New York on Saturday was stopped in Copenhagen to refuel, Chr crieving to FlightTradar Flighting Signature24. The flight, which is normally without stopping, arrived almost six hours after its normal arrival time, according to its website.
The same flight on Friday deviated to Vienna, arriving about four hours at the schedule, according to FlightTradar24.
Pakistan restrictions can also make it difficult for Indian carriers to compete with other airlines, which can continually fly over Pakistan.
The closure of Russia’s airspace, since the cost of flying around Russia was much higher for European carriers than for Chinese carriers, who were not subject to restrictions. However, Russia, and its airspace, is significant larger than that of Pakistan.
Indian Airlines operate most international flights in the country, with more than 9000 international exits scheduled this month, cirium cordination of the Aviation Analysis Company.
O Thesis, Air India is scheduled to fly 519 flights to Europe, and 309 to North America, according to Cirium data.
However, the airline “can overload Russia to get to North America” on some flights, said a Cirium representative to CNBC Travel.
Many flights that link the cities of northern Indies with the Middle East fly directly on Pakistan, a key region for Indian workers and leisure travelers.
Half (49.3%) or outgoing trips from India in 2023 went to the Middle East, according to the Tourist Data Compendium of India 2024.
The United Arab Emirates is the most popular destination, which attracts about 7.2 million Indian citizens, or whose 50% are Indian migrant workers, 41% are composed of leisure and recreational travelers, while the remaining 9% are business travelers“ According to the tourist data of India.
Higher prices?
Indian aircraft carriers will pay a price, but passengers cannot see that air rates rise much due to the closure of Pakistan airspace, John Grant, chief analyst of the OAG Aviation Intelligence Company said.
“It is symbolic more than anything. Very disruptive for Indian airlines,” he said. “It is unlikely that these types of things alone lead to an increase in aerial rates.”
A five -month closure of Pakistan airspace for Indian carriers in 2019 cost the airlines around 7 billion Indian rupees ($ 82 million), cord about local media.
However, air rates on at least one route have already fallen. April is typically the most exensive month to fly from New Delhi to Srinagar, the largest city of Jammu and Kashmir, with average prices ranging from $ 175 to $ 255, according to Google flights.
Next week, flights to the city, home to around 1.2 million people, are sold for $ 150, showed the website.
An Indian paramilitary military watches in Pahalgam, south of Srinagar, on April 23, 2025, after an attack that killed 26 people in Kashmir administered by India.
Tauseef Mustafa | AFP | Getty images
Air India and Indigo, in separate publications in X last week, declared that they would reimburse or reprogram the reserves to Srinagar until May 7, in the midst of mass cancellations of travel reserves to the area.
Both airlines added flights to Srinagar so that consequence travelers are rushed to leave the region after the massacre last week.
Tourism in Kashmira, recognized by beautiful mountains with a roof of snow and picturesque valleys, has witnessed unprecedented growth in recent years, said Muheet Ul Islam, a journalist and filmmaker who lives in the region.
He said that as the industry and investments increased, the people of other professionals left their jobs to join the sector.
But now, “there is a silence of pins in the region,” he said.
“I talked to some tourists who said they won’t return to the Kashmir Valley, never.”
