News Brief
India Shuts Airspace To All Pakistani Flights In Tit-For-Tat Move Amid Soaring Tensions Over Pahalgam Terror Attack
A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) Passenger jet
India has closed its airspace to all aircraft owned and operated by Pakistani entities — including military planes — in a direct response to Pakistan’s decision last week to bar all flights owned and operated by Indian carriers from its skies, NDTV reported.
The tit-for-tat move comes amid escalating tensions between the two nations after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.
The mutual airspace bans will remain in effect until 11.59 pm UTC on 23 May (5.29 am IST on 24 May).
India issued a NOTAM (Notice to Air Missions), stating: "Indian airspace not available to Pakistan registered aircraft and aircraft operated or leased by Pakistan airlines. These include military flights."
This escalation follows the brutal terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, where 26 tourists were killed by terrorists with links to Pakistan.
The terror attack came days after an inflammatory speech by Pakistan's army chief General Asim Munir.
Fearing Indian retaliation, Pakistan-bound flights were already avoiding Indian skies.
Pakistani flights to Southeast Asia and Oceania must reroute around India, straining fuel budgets and stretching travel times for already cash-strapped Pakistani carriers.
India has escalated pressure with a suite of actions: suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, expelling Pakistani defence diplomats, shutting down border posts, and revoking visas of Pakistani citizens.
Islamabad, meanwhile, has halted trade, blocked Indian aircraft, and citing rights to suspend "all bilateral pacts, including the Simla Agreement".
Fears of an impending Indian military response loom large in Islamabad.
India has vowed to hunt down the perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack and exact retribution against those sheltering them, pledging to go to the "ends of the Earth” and punish them “beyond their imagination”.
