Global carriers avoiding Pakistan airspace as tensions rise between Pakistan and India

Air France and Germany's Lufthansa were among global carriers avoiding Pakistani airspace, airlines said and flight-tracking websites showed, Reuters reports, as tension between India and Pakistan remain high following last month’s deadly attack in Kashmir. 

Russell reported last week that Pakistan had closed its airspace to Indian aircraft, the latest in a series of tit-for-tat measures between the two countries following the killing of tourists in Kashmir.  

India, in turn, has now taken measures such as closing its airspace to Pakistan airlines. Lufthansa Group's airlines are "avoiding Pakistani airspace until further notice" it said in a statement to Reuters, although that will result in longer flight times on some routes to Asia. 

Lufthansa Flight LH760 from Frankfurt to New Delhi had to fly for nearly an hour longer than usual on Sunday because it took a longer route, data from flight-tracking website Flightradar24 showed. 

Flight-tracking data showed some flights of British Airways, Swiss International Air Lines and Emirates travelling over the Arabian Sea and then turning north towards Delhi in order to avoid Pakistani airspace. 

Air France said in a statement: "The airline has decided to suspend overflight of Pakistan until further notice," citing the "recent evolution of tensions" between India and Pakistan. 

Reuters said that Air France has issued a notification that it was altering its flight schedule and flight plans with destinations such as Delhi, Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh, entailing longer flight times. 

In further flight route cancellation news, airlines have been reacting to developments in the Middle East, with European and U.S. carriers cancelling flights for several days after a missile fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels on Sunday landed near Israel's Ben Gurion Airport. 

The conflict is bad news for the economies of both India and Pakistan, however the Pakistan economy, in particular, can ill afford this dispute in the skies, seeing a drop in its earnings from overflight fees, which can run into hundreds of dollars a flight depending on aircraft weight and distance covered. According to Reuters: “Pakistan's reserves with the central bank stand at $10.2 billion, barely enough to cover two months' worth of imports.” 

"It could have a significant impact on some foreign airlines who rely heavily on Pakistan airspace as well as for Pakistan given the loss of overflight revenues," independent aviation analyst Brendan Sobie said. 

Pakistan's civil aviation authority declined to comment.