Int’l flights enroute to Bangladesh diverted amid India-Pakistan crisis

Dhaka: Some Bangladesh-bound international flights had to divert from their routes over security concerns regarding the region’s airspace following a missile strike launched by India on Pakistan in the early hours of May 7.

According to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport officials, the affected flights were Turkish Airlines and Jazeera Airways.

HSIA officials said, the flight from Türkiye to Dhaka diverted around Pakistani airspace and landed at Muscat International Airport in Oman. One Jazeera Airways flight diverted to Dubai, while another returned to Kuwait.

The diverted flights began arriving at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport this morning as operations gradually returned to normal.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh’s Chairman Monjur Kabir Bhuiyan said, they are monitoring the situation.

On the other hand, several Asian airlines were re-routing or cancelling flights to and from Europe because of the clash between India and Pakistan.

India attacked Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir and Pakistan said it had shot down five Indian fighter jets in the worst fighting in more than two decades between the nuclear-armed enemies.

More than two dozen international flights were diverted to avoid Pakistan airspace. By May 7 morning local time, airlines had cancelled 52 flights to or from Pakistan.

There were 57 international flights operating in Pakistan's airspace when India struck.

Images from the flight tracking website showed that the northwestern airspace of India and Pakistan's entire airspace were nearly free of civilian aircraft, barring a few flights.

The changing airline schedules are set to further complicate operations in the Middle East and South Asia regions for carriers, who are already grappling with a fallout from conflicts in the two regions.

Dutch airline KLM said it was not flying over Pakistan until further notice. Singapore Airlines said it had stopped flying over Pakistani airspace since May 6.

Taiwan's EVA Air said that it will adjust its flights to and from Europe to avoid airspace affected by the fighting between India and Pakistan for safety reasons.

Korean Air said it had begun rerouting its Seoul Incheon–Dubai flights on May 7, opting for a southern route that passes over Myanmar, Bangladesh, and India, instead of the previous path through Pakistani airspace.

Thai Airways said that flights to destinations in Europe and South Asia would be rerouted starting early on May 7 morning, while Vietnam Airlines said tensions between India and Pakistan had affected its flight plans.

Taiwan's China Airlines said that flights to and from destinations including London, Frankfurt and Rome had been disrupted, with some cancelled and others having to make technical stops in Bangkok and Prague to refuel and change crews, before taking longer flight paths.

Some flights from India to Europe were also seen taking longer routes. Lufthansa flight LH761 from Delhi to Frankfurt turned right towards the Arabian Sea near the western Indian city of Surat, taking a longer path compared to May 6.

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