Despite a recently announced ceasefire between Pakistan and India, flight operations across at least 24 Indian airports remained suspended on Sunday due to ongoing security concerns and elevated military readiness in border regions. A total of 444 scheduled flights were cancelled as a result.
Indian civil aviation sources confirmed that airports in key northern areas—including Amritsar, Srinagar, Jammu, Ladakh, Dharamshala, Shimla, Adampur, and Chandigarh—remained non-operational as of Sunday morning. All aircraft previously stationed at these airports have been removed, and there is currently no indication of an imminent resumption of services.
Srinagar Airport marked its seventh consecutive day of closure, with 65 flights cancelled. Leh’s Kaushik Airport saw the suspension of all 30 of its daily operations, while Jammu Airport also cancelled 30 flights. Aircraft at all three locations were withdrawn as a precaution.
Chandigarh Airport recorded the highest number of cancellations at 84. Additional disruptions included 14 flights at Dharamshala, 20 at Jodhpur, 20 at Rajkot Herasar, and 10 at Bhuj in Gujarat. Several airports in central and western India also experienced full-day shutdowns of scheduled flight services.
The widespread grounding of flights comes in the wake of Pakistan’s retaliatory military actions following an alleged Indian airspace violation. According to military sources, Pakistan launched its Fateh-1 missile system and reportedly destroyed an Indian S-400 air defence installation—valued at approximately $1.5 billion—at Adampur air base, using a hypersonic missile fired from a JF-17 Thunder fighter jet.
This marked a major escalation in military engagement and triggered urgent diplomatic intervention from the United States. A ceasefire agreement was reached between Islamabad and New Delhi two days ago, following intense behind-the-scenes negotiations.
Despite the truce, the continued suspension of domestic flights indicates that Indian authorities remain cautious. Military bases in several northern states are reportedly still on high alert. No official timeline has been provided by India’s Ministry of Defence or Civil Aviation Authority regarding when normal flight operations might resume.
The Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi has also yet to comment on Pakistan’s claims about the destruction of India’s strategic defence assets.
Regional analysts warn that while the ceasefire represents a diplomatic breakthrough, both countries continue to maintain high levels of military preparedness, particularly in sensitive and contested border zones.
