Air India cargo operations hit by Pakistan airspace closure

Air India’s cargo and passenger operations have been impacted by the closure of Pakistani airspace for Indian carriers. This was stated by Gagan Gupta, Head, Cargo Operations, Air India, while speaking at the India International Cargo Show (IICS) 2025 in Mumbai, during a panel titled ‘Building agile air cargo infrastructure for global expansion & resilience’, moderated by Fletcher Samuel, Assistant General Manager, Cargo Business, Bangalore International Airport.

Gupta said, “There have been significant geopolitical tensions due to which many of our routes are no longer using Pakistani airspace.” He added that this has resulted in higher fuel consumption across these routes, noting that a large part of the airline’s network operates out of Delhi, adding that the airline has been hit by the situation.

L to R: Fletcher Samuel, Assistant General Manager, Cargo Business, Bangalore International Airport, Tej Contractor, Vice President, FIATA, Gagan Gupta, Head - Cargo Operations, Air India, Nikolai Schaffner, Global Head of Commercial - Cargo, Swissport, Stephan Horn, Senior Manager Strategy & Business Development, Aviation & Cargo Development, Frankfurt Airport, Sai Mungara, Global Head Supply Chain, Cipla (Image: IICS)

Following a conflict earlier this year, Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian airlines and aircraft, with India imposing reciprocal restrictions on Pakistani carriers. In a recent development, Pakistan has extended the airspace ban on Indian operators by another month, until the early hours of January 24, 2026, according to a new Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) issued by its aviation authorities. India is likely to reciprocate with a similar extension on Pakistani airlines and aircraft.

This has significantly impacted the international operations of Indian carriers such as Air India and IndiGo, particularly their long-haul services to Europe and North America, resulting in longer routings and overflights.

Gupta further added that a significant portion of the capacity previously handled by Air India is now being taken up by other airlines. Citing an example, he said passenger numbers on the Bengaluru–London route have increased for other carriers but not for Air India, as the airline is operating longer flight durations due to the avoidance of Pakistani airspace, unlike competing airlines.

He acknowledged that some opportunities have been lost; however, he said the carrier has scaled up its interline agreements with other airlines to address this. These include partnerships with Delta Air Lines, interline arrangements with competitors such as Emirates on non-competing routes, and ongoing efforts to establish interline connectivity with ANA. “We are trying to connect more parts of the world through interline,” he said.

He noted that while Air India aims to connect with the world, it does so without approaching every market from a purely competitive standpoint. Instead, the airline evaluates where partnerships make more sense than direct competition.

He also explored the possibility of operating one-stop services to Latin America. However, he said it is currently more feasible to establish tie-ups with carriers such as LATAM.

Gupta said the airline is working to change the way it operates, but its core objective remains to connect as many destinations as possible, for both cargo and passenger operations. He added that Air India currently connects more than 225 airports across India and internationally.

Speaking about North America, he said the airline is able to connect to all major destinations through its interline partnerships and trucking partners for cargo operations, with Hawaii being the only remaining gap. Separately, he added that the airline is working to innovate further to address this and is also utilising the capacity and belly cargo space of its subsidiary, Air India Express, to enhance connectivity in India’s domestic market.

Notably, India’s largest airline by market share, IndiGo, was severely affected recently, facing a major operational crisis in December 2025 that led to the cancellation of thousands of flights within India. The disruption, linked to the enforcement of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s (DGCA) Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) Phase‑II regulations, primarily affected the airline’s domestic operations, resulting in a significant impact on domestic cargo movement.

Rotate data on IndiGo’s outbound passenger aircraft belly capacity shows largely stable capacity through November, averaging around 4,200–4,500 tonnes per day, reflecting the airline’s steady narrowbody-led network. Capacity dropped sharply in early December, due to the disruption, before recovering gradually over the following days. By mid-December, outbound capacity had largely rebounded to near-November levels.