Travel Chaos in India: Over 200 Flights Cancelled After Strikes on PoK
Major disruption hit air travel across northern and western India on Wednesday as over 200 flights were cancelled and 18 airports temporarily closed. This comes following targeted missile strikes launched by Indian armed forces on terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) early that morning.
The Impact of the Strikes
The airstrikes, part of “Operation Sindoor”, were a direct response to the recent deadly terror attack in Pahalgam that claimed the lives of 26 people. As a result of security and airspace restrictions, major airports including Srinagar, Leh, Jammu, Amritsar, Pathankot, Chandigarh, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Shimla, Dharamshala, and Jamnagar were forced to halt operations, according to news agency PTI.
Airlines Take Action
IndiGo, India’s largest airline, was hit hardest, cancelling a total of 165 flights. A spokesperson for the airline explained, “Due to government notification on airspace restrictions, over 165 IndiGo flights from multiple airports… are cancelled until 0529 hrs IST of 10 May 2025.”
Air India also suspended services to and from several key cities, including Jammu, Srinagar, Leh, and Amritsar. The airline confirmed, “Air India flights to and from the following stations… are being cancelled till 0529 hrs IST on 10 May following a notification from aviation authorities on the closure of these airports.”
Both IndiGo and Air India are offering passengers affected by the cancellations flexibility, waiving rescheduling charges or providing full refunds.
Air India Express, SpiceJet, Akasa Air, and Star Air also announced cancellations of various flights, particularly those heading to destinations in the north.
Delhi Airport Affected
At Delhi Airport, the country’s busiest hub, at least 35 flights were cancelled since midnight, including 23 domestic departures, eight arrivals, and four international flights. Foreign carriers like American Airlines and Qatar Airways were also forced to suspend some operations. Qatar Airways announced it temporarily stopped flying to Pakistan due to the closure of Pakistani airspace.
Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), which manages the Indira Gandhi International Airport, acknowledged the disruption, stating, “Kindly note, due to changing airspace conditions some flights have been impacted at Delhi Airport.”
International Flights Diverted
Flight tracking images showed a stark picture of the situation, with the north-western skies over India and Pakistan’s airspace nearly devoid of commercial aircraft.
More than 25 international flights were rerouted to avoid Pakistani airspace, reported Reuters. By Wednesday morning, airlines had cancelled 52 flights to or from Pakistan, according to global flight tracking service FlightRadar24. Several international carriers, including KLM and Singapore Airlines, suspended routes over Pakistan as a precautionary measure.
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