Pakistan’s airspace closure was closed to Indian airlines on Thursday. The carrier has been forced to change several routes that link India to Europe, North America, Central Asia and the Middle East.
Indian airlines, including Air India, Indigo, Akasa Airlines and SpiceJet, fly long on flights on several westbound routes, which means they need to be costly. Detours can be pushed on some flights to add refueling stops or cancel certain routes entirely.
Indigo, the country’s largest airline, said it is the largest airline in market share and expects some international flights to be affected, while Air India said some of its round-trip flights to North America, Europe and the Middle East will take alternative expansion routes. Both statements came last week on social media platform X.
Air India did not respond to CNBC questions regarding the number of routes affected. Indigo says that around 50 routes could be affected, but flights to Almaty, Kazakhstan and Tashkent have been temporarily suspended in Uzbekistan.
The airspace closure comes amidst the Tat’s reaction from nuclear-armed neighbours after 26 tourists were killed in the scenic towns of Jammu and Pahargam in Kashmir, northwestern India and Kashmir.
India linked the massacre to extremists in Pakistan. Pakistan denies it. Pakistan is calling for a “neutral” investigation into the incident that rekindled long-standing territorial tensions that both countries claim.
New routes and refueling will be stopped
According to global flight tracking service Flightradar24, the Air India India Flight A1101 stopped at a stop in Copenhagen on Saturday from New Delhi to New York. The flight, which is usually non-stop, arrived almost six hours after the usual arrival time, according to its website.
According to Flightradar24, the same flight on Friday detoured to Vienna, arriving about four hours late with a delayed schedule.
Pakistan’s restrictions could make it difficult for Indian airlines to compete with other airlines.
The closure of Russia’s airspace has led to some European airlines being cut down and in some cases withdrawal of services to China. This is because flight costs around Russia were much higher for European airlines than for Chinese airlines that were not subject to restrictions. However, Russia and its airspace are much larger than Pakistan’s.
According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, Indian Airlines operates most of its domestic international flights, with over 9,000 international departures scheduled this month.
Of these, Air India will fly 519 flights to Europe and 309 flights to North America, Cirium data shows.
However, on some flights, the airlines “can overturn Russia to reach Russia,” a CIRIUM representative told CNBC trip.
Many flights linking northern India cities to the Middle East will fly directly through Pakistan, an important region for Indian workers and leisure travelers.
According to the 2024 Indian Tourism Data Compilation, half (49.3%) of outbound trips from India in 2023 came to the Middle East.
The United Arab Emirates is the most popular destination and attracts around 7.2 million Indian citizens. Of these, 50% are Indian migrant workers, 41% are leisure and recreational travelers, while the remaining 9% are business travelers.
A higher price?
Indian airlines will pay the price, but passengers may not be able to see airfares rising too much due to the closure of Pakistan’s airspace, said John Grant, chief analyst at airline information company OAG.
“It’s more iconic than anything for an Indian airline,” he said. “These types themselves are unlikely to lead to increased airfares.”
Local media said that the closure of Pakistani airspace to Indian airlines for five months in 2019 cost around Rs 7 billion ($82 million) of airlines.
However, airfares for at least one route have already fallen. According to Google flights, April is usually the most expensive month to fly from New Delhi to Srinagar (the biggest city in Jammu and Kashmir), the largest city in Jammu and Kashmir.
Next week, flights to the city, which has around 1.2 million people living, are selling for $150, the website says.
Indian paramilitary soldiers continue to monitor Pahargam, south of Srinagar, on April 23, 2025, and are under attack that killed 26 people in India-controlled Kashmir.
Tauseef Mustafa | AFP | Getty Images
Air India and Indigo said in separate X posts last week they will be reimbursing or rescheduling reservations to Srinagar until May 7th.
Both airlines have added flights to Srinagar to accommodate travelers rushing to leave the area in the aftermath of last week’s massacre.
Known for its beautiful snowy mountains and picturesque valleys, Kashmir tourism has witnessed unprecedented growth over the past few years, said Muhit Uru Islam, a journalist and filmmaker who lives in the area.
He said people from other professions have left their jobs to join the sector as the industry grew and investment increased.
But now, “there is a pindrop silence in this area,” he said.
“I spoke to several tourists who said they wouldn’t be returning to Kashmir Valley.”
