Pakistan Extends Airspace Ban On India Till March 23

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The tit-for-tat closure of airspace between Pakistan and India will enter its 11th month, after Pakistan issued a fresh notice to airmen (Notam) on Thursday barring Indian aircraft from passing through Pakistan's airspace until March 23. India is expected to reciprocate the ban, observers noted.

The reciprocal closure has been going on for nearly a year now. Indian carriers are estimated to be incurring hefty losses of about $1 billion (Dh3.67 billion) annually because of extended flight paths, increased fuel consumption and operational issues.

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Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian carriers on April 24, 2025, after relations between the two neighbours worsened following the Pahalgam terror attack. India retaliated a few days later by closing its airspace to Pakistani carriers.

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Nearly 800 flights (both departures and arrivals) of Indian airlines have been hit because of the closure of Pakistani airspace. Most of these flights are operated from Delhi and other northern Indian airports to the Gulf, the Middle East, Europe and eastern North America. But Pakistan International Airlines, the flag carrier, has not been affected much as it does not operate many flights over India to the east.

According to the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority, its airspace is classified under two flight information regions, Karachi and Lahore. The Notam applies to both these cities.

This is not the first time political tensions have disrupted air travel in the subcontinent. Back in 2019, after the Pulwama terror attack and subsequent military escalation, Pakistan closed its entire airspace for nearly five months. That closure affected more than 400 flights a day.

Indian government data shows that when Islamabad closed its airspace in 2019, domestic airlines saw a financial cost of nearly $64.3 million during the nearly five-month-long shutdown.

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