Indian airlines have cancelled approximately 350 flights on Sunday amid Middle East tensions after US-Israeli strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Air India suspended nearly 20 flights to European countries including destinations such as London, Zurich, Milan, Frankfurt and Copenhagen. The Indian airline is closely monitoring the situation across West Asia which has necessitated further curtailment of its scheduled operations. Airlines have suspended the flight operations in the Gulf region as a precautionary measure. There is a complete suspension of flights by all Indian carriers to 11 countries in the Middle East.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has issued a statement on X, which says: “Due to airspace restrictions over Iran and parts of the Middle East, 410 flights of domestic carriers were cancelled on 28 February, and 444 flights are expected to be cancelled on 1 March. DGCA is maintaining close coordination with airlines to ensure full compliance with safety and operational regulations,”. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has directed the airlines to avoid the airspaces of 11 countries till March 02. The 11 countries respectively are: Israel, Iran, Iraq, Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Lebanon.
Delhi airport reported around 100 flight cancellations whereas, Mumbai airport reported 125 cancellations. IndiGo has offered passengers to opt for a full refund or reschedule at no additional cost. Akasa Air also offered full refunds or free rescheduling for the affected passengers. SpiceJet has cancelled all the flight operations between India and the UAE for March 01 and March 02.
