Air India, IndiGo, SpiceJet reroute international flights after Pakistan closes airspace

The announcements were made after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to formulate the country's response to India's move to suspend the Indus Water Treaty and downgrade diplomatic ties after the Pahalgam terror attack.

Indian carriers including IndiGo and Air India on April 24 announced that international flights to or from North America, UK, Europe, and the middle east will take alternative extended route after Pakistan closed its airspace for Indian airline.

Air India and IndiGo issued a formal updates, acknowledging the disruption and offering assurances to affected passengers.

“Due to the announced restriction of Pakistan airspace for all Indian airlines, it is expected that some Air India flights to or from North America, UK, Europe, and Middle East will take an alternative extended route,” the Tata Group airline said on a post on social networking website X.

Similarly, IndiGo said that "a few of our international flights are being impacted. We understand the inconvenience this may cause and our teams are doing their best to help you reach your destination at the earliest. We encourage you to check the latest flight status. If your flight is impacted, please explore flexible rebooking options, or claim a refund through our website."

A SpiceJet spokesperson said that the airline's flights to the UAE from North India will now operate via alternative routes. As a result, these flights will carry additional fuel to account for the longer flying time. However, the spokesperson clarified that there is no significant impact on SpiceJet's flight schedules.

The Pakistan government on April 23 announced the immediate closure of its airspace to all Indian-owned and Indian-operated airlines, reported Reuters. It also suspended all trade with India, including goods passing through Pakistan to or from third countries and objected to India’s decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance, the report added.

The announcements were made after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to formulate the country's response to India's move to suspend the Indus Water Treaty and downgrade diplomatic ties after the Pahalgam terror attack.

The meeting was attended by key ministers and the three services chiefs.

Domestic airlines in India have received requests to reschedule or cancel around 15,000 flight tickets to Srinagar since terrorists struck at a prime tourist spot in Pahalgam in south Kashmir on April 22, 2025, killing at least 26 people, mostly tourists, and injuring several others, data shared with Moneycontrol by online travel portals and domestic airlines showed.

Senior executives from domestic airlines told Moneycontrol that around 60,000 to 70,000 passengers fly to Srinagar every week from across India and in the aftermath of the deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, tourism to Kashmir is likely to take a hit, at least for the next fortnight.

Airline executives added that Indian airlines faced a similar situation for about five months in 2019 after the Pulwama terror attack.

The Pulwama terror attack on February 14, 2019, killed 40 CRPF personnel. In retaliation, the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out airstrikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Balakot, Pakistan, on February 26. Pakistan responded by immediately closing its airspace to Indian carriers, a restriction that lasted for about five months and was lifted on July 16, 2019.

Indian carriers lost over Rs 540 crore between February 26 and July 2, 2019, due to Pakistan's airspace closure, then Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had told the Rajya Sabha. Air India alone incurred losses of Rs 491 crore, while private airlines SpiceJet, IndiGo, and Go First lost Rs 30.73 crore, Rs 25.1 crore, and Rs 2.1 crore, respectively, during that period.

Rerouting could become more complex and costly as Indian carriers' international operations have expanded significantly from 2019 to 2025. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, Air India now operates around 1,188 international flights per week, a 56.7 per cent increase from April 2019. Its India-Europe flights, many of which traverse Pakistan's airspace, have surged by about 80 per cent to 242 services per week. Similarly, its India-North America flights, also relying on Pakistan's airspace, have more than doubled to 144 per week.