Pakistan reopens airspace; India closes 21 airports
RAWALPINDI: The Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) announced on Wednesday that air traffic had been restored on major routes, while at least 21 airports across India’s northern and north-western regions have been closed for passenger flights until May 10.
According to PAA, some airspace, particularly sections over Lahore, will remain closed for another 24 hours due to “operational reasons,” a revised notice to airmen (NOTAM) said.
The NOTAM specified that certain airspace sections over Lahore would be temporarily unavailable at all altitudes from 10:50am on May 7, until 12:20pm on May 9, while flights taking off from or landing at Islamabad International Airport were directed to contact Air Traffic Control (ATC) for clearance.
The PAA said in a statement that it has formally conveyed its concerns to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) “regarding the serious risks posed to civil aviation safety by India’s reckless and provocative actions.” This followed an earlier complete closure of Pakistan’s airspace for 48 hours after a military confrontation with India on Tuesday night.
While the PAA issued a revised NOTAM later on Wednesday, stating that airspace in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, and Karachi was fully restored, it reiterated the Lahore restrictions.
A CAA spokesman told Dawn that “only a few routes between Lahore and Islamabad will remain closed, but other routes between the two cities would remain functional.”
The PAA also stated that all airports across Pakistan “will remain fully operational,” adding the country’s airspace “continues to be open and secure for civil aviation activities.”
Indian airports closed
The airports in India’s north will remain closed till 5:29am on May 10, as per the NOTAM issued to airlines, accessed by The Hindu. The airports span Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir as well as Leh, and States of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. This resulted in a large number of flight cancellations by Indian airlines operating domestic routes.
These include airports at Jammu and Srinagar in J&K and Leh; Amritsar, Chandigarh, Patiala, Halwara airports in Punjab; Shimla and Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh; Jodhpur, Bikaner, Jaisalmer and Kishangarh in Rajasthan; and Bhuj, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Mundra, Porbandar, Kandla, Keshod, and Bhuj in Gujarat, as per a NOTAM issued by the Airports Authority of India.
Additional airports impacted were Gwalior and Hindon, according to information posted by airlines on X. Many of these airports are used jointly by airlines and the Indian Air Force.
International flights were among those affected by the escalated military tensions between India and Pakistan, including those of US carriers, as they couldn’t use Pakistan’s airspace to enter into India.
Our Correspondent in New Delhi also contributed to this report
Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2025