After ceasefire with Pakistan, India announces reopening of 32 airports shut due to conflict
Following the ceasefire understanding between India and Pakistan, New Delhi has cancelled the temporary closure of airports in the northern and western parts of the country, making them available for regular civil flight operations.
Amid the major escalation in tensions with Pakistan last week, India had announced the temporary closure of 32 airports till 5.29 am India time on May 15, according to a series of Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs) issued on Friday by India’s aviation authorities. Those NOTAMs were cancelled Monday morning with immediate effect, and resumption of regular flight operations to and from the airports is likely soon.
“Attention Flyers; reference notice issued for temporary closure of 32 Airports for civil Aircraft operations till 05:29 hrs of 15 May 2025. It is informed that these Airports are now available for civil Aircraft operations with immediate effect. It is recommended for travellers to check flight status directly with Airlines and monitor Airline’s websites for regular updates,” the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said in a release.
Following India’s precision strikes at nine “terror sites” in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir, as part of ‘Operation Sindoor’, in the wee hours on Wednesday (May 7), New Delhi had announced closure of around 25 airports — close to the India-Pakistan border or housed at key Indian Air Force bases — initially till Saturday 5:29 am in order to keep civilian air traffic away from potential harm. But with tensions escalating and Pakistan resorting to large-scale drone and missile attacks at Indian military installations in northern and western India, and India’s proportionate military response to Pakistan, the temporary closure of airports had been extended at least till May 15 morning, with a few more airports being added to the list.
The affected airports included Srinagar, Jammu, Leh, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Ambala, Ludhiana, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Uttarlai, Rajkot, Bhuj, Jamnagar, Dharamshala, Bathinda, Patiala, Pathankot, Shimla, Kishangarh, Hindon, Porbandar, Mundra, and Kandla, among others. Barring a few, the majority of these airports are located at defence airfields, with some seeing only a handful commercial flights a day. For the past few days, there has been almost no civilian aircraft activity north of Delhi and in much of Rajasthan and Gujarat, where some of the sensitive airports close to the India-Pakistan border and key Indian Air Force stations are located.
“In line with latest government directives, the airports are open for operations. We will progressively commence operations on the previously closed routes. As services gradually return to normal, there may still be a few delays and last-minute adjustments. We sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding as our teams work diligently to restore seamless operations,” India’s largest airline IndiGo said in a travel advisory.
The closure of airports in northern and western India due to the conflict with Pakistan was leading to cancellation of over 300 flights a day, industry sources indicated. Over 160 flights a day of the country’s largest airline IndiGo alone were being cancelled due to these airport closures.
