Kabul: The commercial flight operations from and to Kabul were disrupted due to the sudden closure of the Hamid Karzai International Airport. The schedules for the few remaining airlines operating flights to Afghanistan went into disarray.
The Civil Aviation Authority in Afghanistan has released two NOTAMs or notices to airmen on Monday. In the first notice, it announced that the civilian side of Hamid Karzai International Airport was closed until further notice and the airspace in Kabul has been released to the military. In the other notice, it asked all air carriers to reroute the flights as any transit through Kabul airspace will be uncontrolled.
Air India has confirmed that the airspace over Afghanistan had been declared closed and no commercial aircraft could operate there. ‘Our scheduled flight to Kabul also cannot go’ said Air India spokesperson.
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Air India, Pakistan International Airlines and Turkish Airlines are among the few airlines currently operating flights to Kabul. Earlier, Dubai based air carriers, Emirates and FlyDubai had suspended flights to and from Kabul.
On Sunday, an Air India flight from New Delhi to Kabul had to hover over the Afghan capital for almost an hour as there was no clearance from air traffic control for the aircraft to land. The flight returned late in the evening with 129 passengers, including officials and security personnel from the Indian embassy and Afghans fleeing their country.
Air India has rescheduled its flight for Kabul from morning to afternoon. ‘Air India flight has been rescheduled for Kabul from 8:30 am to 12:30 due to prevailing situation in Kabul’, said an Air India official .
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