National carrier Air India lengthened its blanket suspension of services to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Qatar until 23:59 IST on 2 March, citing “operational and security assessments.” The update, published by The Indian Awaaz at 19:40 local time, also listed fresh cancellations on Delhi–Zurich, Delhi–Copenhagen and Amritsar–Birmingham sectors. Although the pause nominally covers just one additional day, network-planning insiders say the airline is preparing contingency timetables through 6 March if over-flight corridors remain limited. Re-routing via the Red Sea and Mediterranean adds up to 90 minutes per Europe sector and 2-plus hours to North America, increasing fuel burn and crew-duty costs. Corporate travel managers must therefore check PNRs daily; many tickets are being re-issued with new flight numbers and timings under the same booking code, a change some self-booking tools miss. Air India is offering free date changes within 30 days and full refunds for sectors that cannot be re-accommodated—a policy mobility teams should leverage before purchasing new fares. The bigger picture: the Gulf represents Air India’s most profitable short-haul market, carrying migrant workers and business passengers. Every 24-hour extension strands roughly 18,000 passengers and removes 3,500 tonnes of weekly belly cargo capacity critical for India’s pharma exports. Businesses shipping temperature-sensitive goods should shift loads to IndiGo’s Colombo or Singapore routes where capacity is still available, albeit at higher rates. Expect spot air-freight prices to stay elevated until Saudi and UAE airspaces reopen.
Source: The Indian Awaaz
