Air India’s international flights will not be affected by the closure of sections of Pakistan air space. “The closure is for low-level flying,” sources in Air India said.
On Wednesday, Pakistan issued a Notice to Airman saying that between August 29 and August 30 “all SIDS and STARS of Karachi/Jinnah Intional will remain suspended.”
A SID is sometimes called a Departure Procedure, while STAR is for Standard Terminal Arrival route, which defines a pathway into an airport from the skies.
The move comes hours after Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Following the meeting, a cabinet colleague of Khan tweeted that Pakistan is considering a complete closure of airspace to India, and a complete ban on the use of the country’s land to facilitate Indian trade with Afghanistan.