Air India Express

Aviation
India

"With the advent of escalating US-Iran tensions, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has asked Indian airlines to steer clear of airspace around Iran, Iraq, Gulf of Oman and waters of the Persian Gulf. 'In light of the tensions within the Iranian airspace, a decision to temporarily reroute flights of Air India and Air India Express overflying Iran has been taken,' says Dhananjay Kumar, Air India spokesperson. Indigo along with Air India will also reroute its flights that use Iranian airspace.The advisory came after Ukraine International Airlines B737-800 crashed near Tehran [on January 8, 2020]. The aircraft was operating flight PS752 from Tehran to Kyiv when it disappeared from radar a few minutes after departure at 0610 local time." (Business Traveller, "Indian airlines to avoid Iranian airspace," January 9, 2020)

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"The civil aviation regulator on Saturday decided to ban Indian carriers from flying over the Iranian airspace, fearing an increase in hostilities between the U.S. and Iran and to ensure safety of passengers, crew and aircraft flying the route. The decision, which will impact Air India and IndiGo, comes a day after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) banned U.S. carriers from flying over the Iranian airspace, days after Iran shot down an unmanned U.S. spy drone. As a result, United Airlines has suspended its direct flight from Newark to Mumbai." (The Hindu, "Indian Carriers told to skip Iranian airspace," 6/23/2019).

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"Air India Express, the low-cost unit of the South Asian nation’s flag carrier, has put on hold a plan to fly to Tehran amid renewed tensions between the U.S. and Iran after President Donald Trump imposed fresh sanctions on the Persian Gulf country. Since some of Air India Ltd.’s plane purchases were funded by the Export-Import Bank of the United States, it won’t be able to fly to places where the U.S. government imposes sanctions, K. Shyamsundar, the airline’s chief executive officer, told Rishaad Salamat in a Bloomberg Television interview in Singapore on Tuesday. The carrier may now fly to Bahrain via Doha instead, he said." ( Bloomberg News, "Trump-Iran Tensions Halt Indian Carrier's Tehran Flight Plans," 2/22/2017).