New Delhi: The Centre on Friday extended the closure of 24 airports to May 15 till 5:29 amid tensions between India and Pakistan, after New Delhi launched Operation Sindoor on Wednesday. Under the operation, India targeted nine of nine locations of Pakistani terrorist groups LeT, JeM, and HM.
Tensions increased further after Pakistan attempted to attack several cities through drones and missiles only to be thwarted by Indian armed forces. As per the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Pakistani tried to target several cities with 300-400 drones.
Earlier on Thursday, the Centre announced the closure of 24 airports for civilian flight operations till May 10. Among airports that would remain closed till May 15, include Chandigarh, Srinagar, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Bhuntar, Kishangarh, Patiala, Shimla, Jaisalmer, Pathankot, Jammu, Bikaner, Leh, Porbander and others. Several airlines have issued travel advisories for passengers and urged them to remain updated on closures of airports and increased security protocols.
Airlines share messages with passengers
“Following a notification from aviation authorities on the continued closure of multiple airports in India, Air India flights to and from the following stations – Jammu, Srinagar, Leh, Jodhpur, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Bhuj, Jamnagar, and Rajkot – are being canceled till 0529 hrs IST on 15 May, pending further updates,” Air India said in a message on X. It added “Customers holding valid tickets for travel during this period will be offered a one-time waiver on rescheduling charges or a full refund for cancellations.”
IndiGo has canceled its flights to and from Jammu, Amritsar, Srinagar, Leh, Dharamsala, Chandigarh Rajkot, Bikaner, Jodhpur and Kishangarh. Flight operations have also been affected at Delhi airport due to increased security.
“Delhi airport operations remain normal. However, due to evolving airspace conditions and heightened security measures, some flight schedules and security processing timings may be impacted,’ DIAL wrote on X.
