After the terror attack in Pahalgam, Pakistan has closed its airspace to Indian airlines, thinking it would create problems for India’s aviation industry. However, the decision seems to have backfired, as Pakistan could end up losing millions in aviation fees. Since Indian flights are now avoiding Pakistan’s airspace, the country will lose out on overflight charges - the fees airlines pay when flying through a country.

A Pakistani social media user shared a video showing an Indian plane taking a longer route to avoid Pakistan, captioning it with "Aur lo Panga" (meaning “See what happened”). In reply to the post, another user, Naren Menon, explained that this move would cost Pakistan heavily. He pointed out that Indian airlines, which are one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing markets, bring in a significant amount in overflight fees, and losing this would mean missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars every year.

Menon also clarified that although some foreign airlines still use Pakistani airspace, most flights from India towards Europe and North America are operated by Indian carriers like Air India and IndiGo. Hence, Pakistan will miss a major chunk of revenue.

While Indian airlines are preparing for longer travel times and higher fuel expenses, Pakistan faces a bigger problem: a direct loss of aviation income. This isn’t the first time Pakistan has suffered because of an airspace ban. Back in 2019, after the Pulwama attack, Pakistan closed its skies and reportedly lost almost $100 million.

During that period, about 400 flights were affected daily. A Boeing 737 paid about $580 to fly over Pakistan, while larger planes paid even more. Officials estimated that overflight charges alone cost Pakistan around $232,000 per day. Adding parking, landing fees, and losses from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), the daily losses shot up to about $760,000.

Now, Pakistan risks repeating the same mistake. Flights from cities like Delhi, Amritsar, Jaipur, Lucknow, and Varanasi are being rerouted over the Arabian Sea. A senior pilot said flights to Europe and the US will take 2 to 2.5 hours longer, leading to higher fuel costs and more delays.

In the end, even though Indian airlines will spend more on operations, the bigger financial blow will fall on Pakistan.
This shows that using airspace restrictions for political reasons can sometimes end up hurting your own economy more than your rival’s.

 

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