Pakistan air space restriction impacts 11 international flights to and from Delhi

New Delhi: The closure of Pakistan air space resulted in cancellation of 11 international flights to and from the national capital's Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport on Friday.

Pakistan has banned Indian aircraft from using its airspace and Pakistan's Air Traffic Control (ATC) has banned flying of any aircraft below 32,000 feet.

However, the commercial airspace in Pakistan was partially opened on Friday.

Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said four Pakistani airports were resuming flight operations from Friday evening while the airspace in the rest of the country would remain closed until Monday.

According to people in the know, there is a fresh NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) for international flights having the air space restrictions over Pakistan which restricts flights until 1.30 p.m on March 4.

The original NOTAM issued on Wednesday said the restriction was applicable until Friday morning.

The air space restriction by Pakistan impacted traffic at the IGI Airport with 11 international cancellations -- 5 departures and 6 arrivals.

On Thursday, the restriction had resulted in cancellation of 24 flights -- 12 departures and 12 arrivals.

The development comes days after the IAF chased away intruding Pakistani fighter jets in the Jammu and Kashmir's Nowshera sector.

On their part, airlines like Lufthansa and Air India, however, said the restriction would not have any major impact on their operations.