Closure of Pak airspace may force Indian airlines to hike airfare

New Delhi: Pakistan's decision to close its airspace to India-based airlines will adversely affect Indian aviation firms. They will have to take longer routes, burn more fuel, and face other complexities, including scheduling.

The northwestern neighbour closed its airspace to Indian airlines after India acted tough against Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 that killed 26 people and injured 17 others.

Since the ban does not apply to foreign airlines, Indian airlines might face a loss of revenue. Indian airlines taking alternative, longer routes would also increase ticket fares since aircraft will consume more fuel. However, foreign airlines using the Pakistani airspace could operate with the existing lower airfare. This might force many passengers to opt for foreign airlines.

The closure of the Pakistani airspace will majorly affect flights from North Indian airports, including Delhi.

Pakistan had earlier closed its airspace to Indian and foreign airlines following India's airstrike on Balakot, in retaliation for the terrorist attack at Pulwama in 2019. However, the ban now applies to aircraft owned or taken on lease by Indian airlines.

For instance, if an Emirates flight could fly west over Pakistan, an Indian aircraft should take an alternative route over Gujarat. Air India and IndiGo are likely to bear the brunt of the ban more.

IndiGo, which operates on 50 international routes, is likely to reschedule its flights. The airline has stopped operating low-cost schedules to Tashkent in Uzbekistan and Almaty in Kazakhstan till May 7. The airlines made the decision since the schedules are not financially viable in the changed scenario.

Additionally, aircraft have to carry more fuel since alternative routes are longer. Taking more fuel adds to the aircraft's weight, prompting airlines to restrict luggage. Further, airlines operating on long routes will have to make fuel stops in between, forcing a change in the shifts of their crew members. They will also have to deploy additional crew members, which could affect the schedules.

Several of Air India's non-stop schedules had to make unscheduled stops yesterday. Flights from Delhi to Washington and New York were rerouted via Vienna. The flight to Delhi from Canada's Vancouver landed at Copenhagen, Denmark, before flying to its destination. Delhi-Chicago and San Francisco-Mumbai flights, too, landed at Copenhagen. Paris-Delhi and London-Delhi schedules landed at Abu Dhabi before flying to their destinations.