[SINGAPORE] Singapore Airlines (SIA) and its budget arm Scoot have stopped flying over Pakistani airspace after fighting broke out between Pakistan and neighbouring India.
The Singapore carriers have been using alternative flight paths since Tuesday (May 6) to avoid the war zone.
In response to queries from The Business Times, an SIA spokesperson said the diversion may result in slightly longer flight times for some flights, without specifying the affected routes.
Other Asian airllines that have taken precautionary steps include Taiwan’s Eva Air and Korean Air, Thai Airways and Vietnam Airlines.
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Earlier, Air France and Germany’s Lufthansa also announced diversions away from Pakistani airspace. 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.
On Wednesday (May 7), India and Pakistan exchanged heavy artillery fire along their contested Kashmir frontier, following New Delhi’s missile strikes on its arch-rival in a major escalation between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
Pakistan said it had shot down five Indian fighter jets in the worst fighting in more than two decades between the enemies.
EVA Air said it will adjust its flights to and from Europe to avoid airspace affected by the fighting.
Korean Air said it had begun rerouting its Seoul-Dubai flights on Wednesday, opting for a southern route that passes over Myanmar, Bangladesh and India, instead of the previous path through Pakistani airspace.
Thai Airways and Vietnam Airlines are also diverting some flights.
Taiwan’s China Airlines said it had activated its contingency plan and “taken a series of measures to ensure the safety of its passengers and crew”. It did not elaborate.
The website of Taiwan’s main international airport at Taoyuan, outside Taipei, showed that Wednesday’s China Airlines non-stop flight to London had been cancelled.
Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, any Europe-bound flights from Taiwan flew over Russia but Taiwanese airlines are now banned after Taipei joined in Western sanctions on Moscow and generally fly over India, Pakistan and Central Asia.
