Pakistan opens its airspace after ceasefire announcement, but Indian aircraft still not allowed to overfly
Following the announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan on Saturday, Islamabad has withdrawn the closure of Pakistani airspace to civil aircraft operations, as per a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) Saturday evening. Earlier on Saturday, following a major escalation in tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi, Pakistan had issued NOTAMs announcing the closure of its airspace at least till 12 pm Pakistan time (1230 pm IST) on Sunday, May 11. The new NOTAM issued in the evening cancelled the earlier notices issued on Saturday.
Notably though, the ban on Indian airlines and Indian aircraft from the Pakistani airspace, which was imposed from the evening of April 24, remains in place as the status of that NOTAM showed as 'Valid' on the PCAA's database. India's ban on Pakistani airlines and aircraft in its airspace also remains in place.
Following a major escalation in tensions between India and Pakistan that saw the neighbouring countries launching multiple strikes at each other's military installations overnight and on Saturday morning, Islamabad had initially issued a NOTAM announcing closing of its airspace to all aircraft from 3:15 am to 12 pm (Pakistan time) Saturday. It subsequently issued another NOTAM, saying that the airspace will remain shut till Sunday noon. Late Friday, India had announced temporary closure of 32 airports across northern and western India for civil aircraft operations till 5:29 am IST on May 15.
In the wake of India's precision strikes at nine locations in Pakistan as part of 'Operation Sindoor' in the wee hours on Wednesday, New Delhi had announced closure of around 25 airports—close to the India-Pakistan border or housed at key Indian Air Force bases—initially till Saturday 5:29 am in order to keep civilian air traffic away from potential harm. But with tensions escalating and Pakistan resorting to large-scale drone and missile attacks at Indian military installations in northern and western India, and India's proportionate military response to Pakistan, the temporary closure of airports was extended, and a few more airports were added to the list.
However, prior to Saturday, Pakistan had not shut its airspace or airports to civil aircraft operations, even as it repeatedly mounted drone and missile attacks against India over the past few days. India on Friday and Saturday hit out at Pakistan for using civilian aircraft as 'shields' as it allowed these to operate close to the international border with India, even as both countries were engaged in a military conflict in the region.
But that changed overnight after India 'engaged with' Pakistan's military targets at six locations—Rafiki, Murid, Chaklala, Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur and Juniya—using 'air-launched precision weapons' from Indian fighter aircraft. The Indian response followed Pakistan's 'escalatory' and 'provocative' actions in which it attempted air intrusions at multiple locations, which were thwarted by the Indian armed forces.
Most international airlines were already avoiding overflying the Pakistani airspace amid soaring tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad. Prior to the closure of the Pakistani airspace on Saturday, most of the commercial flight activity there was largely limited to domestic flights or some international flights to and from Pakistani airports.
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