NEW DELHI: Airlines flying to and from areas affected by US and Israeli attacks on Iran are now avoiding these areas and trying to find ways to evacuate crews from there. Going forward, flights between the West and India and elsewhere in the East will now be longer, with possible refueling stops on North American routes.When Iran’s combat operations began, hundreds of commercial flights were flying through or about to enter the affected airspace from Iran to Israel. Among them are air indiaThe Delhi-Tel Aviv flight (AI 139) was in Saudi airspace at the time. The airline asked the pilot to turn back and proceed to Mumbai. AI’s Chicago-Delhi flight (AI 126) was about to enter Iraqi airspace but instead headed to Syria, taking the longer route home. AI is currently working to evacuate its crew from Tel Aviv.
An Air India spokesperson said: “Due to the closure of Israeli airspace, flight AI139 from Delhi to Tel Aviv on February 28 will return to Mumbai for the safety of passengers and crew. Air India deeply apologizes for the inconvenience caused to passengers by this unexpected situation and remains committed to maintaining the highest safety standards. We will continue to evaluate the safety and security environment in which our flights operate and proactively adjust operations as needed.”AI has stopped flying over Iraq on night flights to and from Europe starting Friday night, people familiar with the matter said. U.S. flights, which used to fly over Iraq during the day, have also stopped. AI’s North American flights may now pause for refueling in Vienna or Rome. IndiGo is also studying the impact on its flights.For Indian airlines, the entire airspace from Pakistan to west of Iraq is a no-go zone, which will affect all flights to and from Europe, the UK and North America. IndiGo’s CIS flights will be affected.AI’s request to use the Hotan waypoint in northwest China has not yet been approved. AI believes it can find a way out of Pakistani airspace for flights to and from Europe/UK/North America if this route is allowed to cross high mountains.
