Pakistan has once again extended the ban on Indian aircraft using its airspace. The Pakistan Airports Authority released a fresh Notice to Airmen that keeps the restriction in place until October 23. The ban covers every Indian-registered plane as well as any aircraft operated or leased by Indian airlines, including military flights.
This is the seventeenth such notice since the original ban began on April 23, 2025. At that time Islamabad closed its skies to Indian carriers after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty following the deadly Pahalgam attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan for the incident, a charge that Islamabad firmly rejected while calling for a fair and independent investigation.
India answered by shutting its own airspace to Pakistani airlines on April 30 last year. Tensions rose sharply when Indian forces struck several Pakistani cities on May 6 and 7, 2025. Pakistan hit back with Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, targeting multiple Indian military sites. During the short but intense conflict, Pakistani forces brought down eight Indian fighter jets, among them three Rafale aircraft, along with dozens of drones. The fighting lasted nearly 87 hours before a United States-brokered ceasefire took effect on May 10.
Aviation experts note that the ongoing airspace ban has hit Indian airlines much harder than Pakistani carriers. Longer routes and higher fuel costs have increased operating expenses for Indian operators, while Pakistan’s aviation sector has faced only limited disruption. Similar restrictions appeared during the 1999 Kargil conflict and the 2019 Pulwama crisis, and in both cases Indian airlines suffered greater operational challenges.
The latest extension keeps the skies closed for several more weeks and shows that the current restrictions remain firmly in place. Airlines on both sides continue to adjust schedules and routes while waiting for any future change in the airspace policy.
