Pakistan’s decision to close its airspace due to a conflict with India led to the cancelation or rerouting of 10 flights from EVA Airways and China Airlines yesterday, the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Web site showed.
Pakistan closed its airspace after a series of strikes conducted by India early yesterday morning against what New Delhi called “known terror camps” in response to a mass shooting on April 22.
As a result, several flights to and from Taoyuan airport were rerouted or delayed for safety reasons, the airport operator said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Ten flights had been affected, including China Airlines flights that departed on Tuesday headed for Prague, Amsterdam, Rome, London and Frankfurt, Germany, with the planes rerouted to Bangkok.
China Airlines’ Taipei to London flight today was canceled.
China Airlines said it activated contingency plans and had “taken a series of measures to ensure the safety of its passengers and crew,” without elaborating.
EVA Air’s Amsterdam-Bangkok-Taipei, London-Bangkok-Taipei and Taipei-to-Paris flights were rerouted.
Flight BR62 from Vienna to Bangkok returned to Vienna, while Flight BR95 from Taoyuan to Milan was diverted to Vienna to refuel before continuing onto Italy, EVA Air said.
EVA Air would continue to monitor the situation and adjust routes to avoid affected airspace to ensure safety of its crew members and passengers, it said.
Before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many Europe-bound flights from Taiwan flew over Russia, but Taiwanese airlines are now banned from doing so after Taipei joined Western sanctions on Moscow. The new routes generally fly over India, Pakistan and Central Asia.
Korean Air said it had begun rerouting its Incheon-Dubai flights, 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, warning that there might be some delays.
Vietnam Airlines said that its flights had been affected and it would provide details regarding rerouting schedules.
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