Air India, IndiGo cancel overseas flights as Iran airspace shuts

Air India and IndiGo on Thursday (January 15) cancelled some overseas flights as the closure of the Iranian airspace disrupted international flight operations.

Flights of Air India to the US and Europe, and services of IndiGo to CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries, Europe, and Turkey have been impacted, according to officials.

Overseas routes face major impact

The two airlines, along with SpiceJet, issued advisories stating that the Iranian airspace closure would affect certain international services.

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Tata Group-owned Air India cancelled at least three flights to the US, and certain services to Europe will face some delays due to the Iranian airspace closure, an official said.

At least three flights — two from the national capital to New York and Newark, and one from Mumbai to New York — have been cancelled, the official told news agency PTI.

Flights of IndiGo to CIS countries, Europe, and Turkey have also been impacted.

Another official told the agency that flights to Tashkent (Uzbekistan), Almaty (Kazakhstan), Baku (Azerbaijan), and Tbilisi (Georgia) have been impacted, and some of the services have been scrapped.

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These countries are part of the CIS.

Services to European cities and Istanbul (Turkey) have also been impacted due to the closure of the Iranian airspace.

Operational cost to raise

The operational costs are expected to rise for the airlines as they will be forced to take longer routes, resulting in increased fuel consumption.

The closure of Pakistani airspace is already pushing the expenses higher for Air India since the airline is taking longer routes for many of the west-bound flights.

In October last year, Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson said the estimated loss due to the Pakistan airspace closure is Rs 4,000 crore.

Air India generally uses the Iranian airspace for flights to the US and Europe, and the alternative option is to fly over the Iraqi airspace.

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Since using Iraq's airspace will mean a longer duration, the aircraft will not have enough fuel to operate some of the services to the US, the source said.

Carriers clarify on social media

In a post on X, Air India said that due to the emerging situation in Iran, the subsequent closure of its airspace, and in view of the safety of our passengers, flights overflying the region are now using an alternative routing, which may lead to delays.

"Some Air India flights where currently rerouting is not possible are being cancelled," the airline said, and regretted the inconvenience caused to passengers due to this unforeseen disruption.

Separately, IndiGo, in a post on X, said that due to the sudden airspace closure by Iran, some of its international flights are impacted. "Our teams are working diligently to assess the situation and support affected customers by offering the best possible alternatives," it added.

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SpiceJet also informed through a post on X that due to airspace closure in Iran, some of its flights may be affected.

There have been no SpiceJet flight cancellations due to the airspace issue so far, an official said.

Air India flight returns home midway

Meanwhile, Air India on Thursday said its flight AI101, operating from Delhi to New York (JFK), was forced to return to Delhi shortly after takeoff due to the unexpected closure of Iranian airspace, which impacted its planned route.

"Upon landing in Delhi, the aircraft encountered a foreign object while taxiing in dense fog, resulting in damage to the right engine," it said in a statement.

Tensions are escalating between Iran and the US, and there are fears that the situation could lead to a military conflict.

(With agency inputs)