Nearly a year after Pakistan banned the Indian aircraft from using its airspace, it has yet again extended the ban for another month. Pakistan has kept its airspace shut to Indian flights since April 24, 2025. The airspace ban has been extended till May 24, 2025.
According to a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen), Pakistan airspace is not available for Indian registered aircraft and aircraft operated/owned or leased by Indian airlines/ operators, including military flights.
“All Indian-registered, leased, commercial and military aircraft will remain barred from Pakistani airspace until 5 am on May 24, 2026.” The notice was issued days before the previous one was set to expire on April 24.
The ban will be applicable from April 21 till 2359 hours (UTC) on May 23, which translates to 0530 hours (IST) on May 24, as per the NOTAM issued by the Pakistan Airport Authority (PAA).
Meanwhile, India had earlier barred Pakistan from using its airspace, banning all Pakistani airlines, till 0530 hours on April 24. The restriction is expected to be extended further.
Why was airspace shut?
It is now nearly a year since the Pakistan airspace ban came into force. The ban also resulted in Indian carriers taking longer routes for various international destinations including to the Gulf.
India had closed its airspace for use to Pakistani airlines in the wake of the (J&K) on April 22 last year. The terror attack killed 26 people, mostly tourists.
Pakistan, too, closed its airspace for the Indian airlines. The move followed after India. Airspace closures were previously enacted during the 1999 Kargil conflict and the 2019 Pulwama crisis.
In August, a report by Dawn mentioned in a report in August that Pakistan had incurred heavy financial losses after closing its airspace to Indian-registered aircraft. According to the report, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) lost more than ₹1,240 crore in just two months of the ban implementation, the Ministry of Defence informed the National Assembly.
As per Dawn, . The PAA’s revenue plunged between April 24 and June 30, nearly affecting 100-150 Indian aircraft daily and slashing Pakistan’s transit air traffic by almost 20 per cent, as per Dawn.
(With agency inputs)
