Pakistan-India tensions ground Afghan travellers

Airspace restrictions in Pakistan due to simmering tensions with India have caused airfares to spike for Afghans who travel for medical treatment, education and business. Pakistan closed its airspace in February after a suicide bomber from Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e- Mohammed (JeM) attacked a convoy in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Following the attack, both countries carried out aerial bombing missions on each other’s soil and their warplanes also fought a dogfight over Kashmir. The restrictions have forced commercial and passenger flights that connect Afghanistan with India, a major trading partner, to double back west through Iranian airspace and then pass south of Pakistan into India. The detour extends what is usually a two-and-a-half-hour Kabul-New Delhi flight into a five-hour trip, increasing fuel costs for airlines and fares for passengers. Many Afghans seek what they see as superior medical care and university education in India. Most commercial air traffic has resumed normal operations in Pakistan and major airports have opened but some international routes that normally cross Pakistani airspace remain closed. An official at Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority said on Tuesday that airspace remained partially closed but a decision would be made at 6 p.m. (1300 GMT) about whether to re-open. He declined to provide details about which routes were affected. On Tuesday, Afghanistan-based airline Kam Air and Ariana Afghan Airlines still offered direct flights to India, spokesmen for the companies said.<br/>