Pakistan NOTAM: Many foreign airlines are avoiding Pakistani airspace, travel will take more time

Several foreign airlines, such as Germany's Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways, Swiss, Italy's ITA, and Poland's LOT are not using Pakistani airspace, given the rising tension with India. India and Pakistan have already declared their airspace closed to each other's airlines.

Lufthansa Group airlines said in a statement that they are avoiding Pakistani airspace until further notice. However, due to this, the time of flights on some routes in Asia will increase. Also said that they are keeping an eye on the developments. Flight tracking data showed that some flights of British Airways, Swiss International Airlines, and Emirates were turning north towards Delhi to avoid Pakistani airspace after crossing the Arabian Sea. Citing tensions between India and Pakistan, Air France said the airline had decided to suspend flying over Pakistan until further notice. The airline said it was changing its flight schedules and flight plans to destinations such as Delhi, Bangkok, and Ho Chi Minh. This has increased flight times.

According to data from flight tracking website Flightradar24, Lufthansa flight LH760 from Frankfurt to New Delhi on Sunday had to fly nearly an hour longer as it had to take a longer route. Apart from longer distances and higher fuel costs for airlines, these changes will also reduce Pakistan's revenue from overflight fees. This can amount to hundreds of dollars per flight depending on the weight of the aircraft and the distance covered.