Air India announced that it would temporarily stop operating flights to Europe, East of North America, and Canada after the Middle East and UAE shut down their airspace on Monday night.
“Amid the developing situation in the Middle East, Air India has ceased all operations to the region as well as to and from the East Coast of North America and Europe with immediate effect, until further notice,” the airline said in a statement.
“Our India-bound flights from North America are diverting back to their respective origins and others are being diverted back to India or re-routed away from the closed airspaces. We request the understanding of all passengers who may be affected by this disruption that’s beyond an airline’s control. Air India is in continuous consultation with its external security advisors and is vigilantly monitoring the evolving situation. We will keep our passengers informed of any updates. The safety and security of our passengers and staff remain our number one priority,” it added.
Air India flights to Europe and North America use the Middle East for operations.
According to Cirium, an aviation analytics company tracking disruptions to flights to the Middle East, at least nine flights en route to different countries in the Middle East had to return to their original destination. These included two IndiGo flights and four each of Air India and Air India Express.
“In light of the recent developments in the Middle East, flight arrivals and departures from Dubai, Doha, Bahrain, Dammam, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Ras AI-Khaimah and Tbilisi are impacted. We are actively monitoring the situation and adjusting our operations to ensure the highest level of safety for our customers and crew. We understand that diversions/delays disrupt travel plans, and we sincerely regret the inconvenience caused. Impacted customers are advised to check their flight status on our website or app and may explore alternate travel options available online…” IndiGo said on X.
An Air India Express official said that due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East and suspension of Qatar airspace, Air India Express diverted its Doha-bound flight from Kochi to Muscat and returned the flight bound from Kannur.
“We have no other flights bound for Qatar. Air India Express has no aircraft on the ground in Qatar. We are monitoring the situation closely and will take all necessary precautions for the safety and security of our guests and crew, with inputs from the relevant authorities. We regret the inconvenience due to circumstances beyond our control and request guests to update their contact details for real time updates and check their flight status on airindiaexpress.com or Chat with Tia for cancellations and refund options,” the spokesperson added.
An Airports Authority of India official said, “The situation led to flight diversions. While many were able to return to their destination airports in Delhi and Mumbai, few had to be diverted to Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai.”
“The flights were however handled and assigned airports by 12.45am,” the official added.
A few of the flights that were enroute when various airspace shut include; 6E 1323, (Kochi- Doha) 6E 1345 (Delhi- Doha), AI 2283 (Delhi- Doha), AI 2289 (Mumbai- Doha), IX 475 (Muscat Kochi), IX 773 (Kannur- Doha), AAI 995 (Delhi- Dubai), IX 191 (Mumbai- Dubai), IX 195 (Jaipur- Dubai).
The airspace closure of the UAE and the Middle East will impact the flights significantly, said aviation expert Mark Martin, CEO of Martin Consulting
“The closure of the UAE and Middle East airspace will impact 65% of the total Indian international flights going to Europe, The US are the primary worker expat market in the middle east. War will also have a deeper impact with Indians wanting to return back from the middle east, so rescue efforts will need to be taken as well if the situation worsens. We now on an emergency basis need to commence work with China and Mongolia to open up its airspace to allow for our flights to transverse its airspace allowing for immediate flight access.”
“However, another route that can be explored is to overfly Ethiopia, enter Egypt, enter Europe via Italy and then go to Morocco to enter the Mediterranean sea. This route however, will add flying time by around four hours and will need fuel or a technical stop that will also lead to rise in airfares,” he said.
