Flights to India and Pakistan disrupted for second day as nuclear powers trade fire

Pakistan airspace was due to reopen on Thursday but airlines including Gulf carriers warn of disruption

Security personnel participate in the civil defence security mock drill at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi on Wednesday. Reuters

Flight schedules to India, Pakistan and the South Asia region were disrupted for a second day on Thursday as the two nuclear powers traded drone and missile fire in an alarming escalation.

Latest updates: Etihad and Emirates cancel services to Pakistan until Saturday

Pakistan's airspace was closed for a period on Thursday morning, with operations at airports in Lahore, the southern port city of Karachi and the north-eastern city of Sialkot halted until noon at least. A number of Indian airports remain affected.

On Thursday, a drone, reportedly Indian, struck a building in Lahore, Pakistan's second-most populous city. While the airspace was open again on Thursday afternoon, certain airports remained closed, which was causing many airlines to suspend and cancel flights.

In the Gulf, Etihad said it had cancelled selected flights to and from Pakistan on Thursday "due to the continued closure of Pakistani airspace". The airline said flights EY296 and EY297 between Abu Dhabi and Karachi were still scheduled to go ahead as planned, subject to airspace availability.

However, the airline said that flights EY300 / EY301 between Abu Dhabi and Islamabad, EY288 / EY289 between Abu Dhabi and Lahore, EY294 / EY295 between Abu Dhabi and Karachi, EY302 / EY303 between Abu Dhabi and Islamabad as well as EY284 / EY285 between Abu Dhabi and Lahore were all cancelled on Thursday.

"This remains an evolving situation, and further changes or disruptions may occur. Etihad continues to monitor developments closely in co-ordination with the relevant authorities," read a statement from the airline. "The safety of our guests and crew remains our highest priority, and we regret any inconvenience caused."

Emirates has suspended all flights to Pakistan until Saturday.

"Emirates is suspending flight operations to all points in Pakistan until May 10, due to ongoing uncertainly surrounding access to the country’s airspace and airports," read a statement on the airline's website.

"We apologise for any inconvenience caused to our customers. We are monitoring the situation closely and will post any operational updates on our website."

Customers can check the latest travel information by visiting the flight status page.

Flydubai said flights FZ391/392 to and from Faisalabad, FZ325/326 to and from Multan and FZ315/316 to and from Sialkot airports were running on Thursday. However, the airline said its remaining flights to Faisalabad, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Sialkot and Quetta have been cancelled for Thursday and Friday.

“We will continue to monitor the situation closely and amend our flight schedule accordingly,” said an airline representative. “The safety of our passengers and crew is our priority. We apologise for the inconvenience caused to our passengers’ travel schedules.”

Along with Etihad and Qatar, Emirates was among those to halt flights on Wednesday from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha to airports in northern India and Pakistan.

International impact

“Due to the ongoing situation, our flights to and from Leh, Srinagar, Jammu, Dharamshala, Kandla and Amritsar are cancelled till 5.29am May 10,” SpiceJet said on social media.

Taiwan's EVA Air told travellers that “flights to and from Europe might be affected”, advising passengers to check their flight status before arriving at the airport.

Thai Air has advised passengers that “due to the closure of airspace and some airports in Pakistan after the conflict in South Asia, flights to destinations in Europe and South Asia will be rerouted which may cause delays in some flights”.

More than 430 flights were cancelled with 27 airports closed across northern, western and central India until Saturday, reported The Times of India on Wednesday afternoon.

Air India has also cancelled a number of flights due to the escalation. Flights to and from Jammu, Srinagar, Leh, Jodhpur, Amritsar, Bhuj, Jamnagar, Chandigarh and Rajkot will remain cancelled until Saturday.

Budget airline Air India Express also notified visitors to its website that flights to and from Amritsar, Gwalior, Jammu, Srinagar and Hindon would be cancelled until Saturday.