About two dozen flights have been cancelled from the Benazir Bhutto International Airport in the wake of possible Indian aggression and subsequent exercises of the Pakistan Air Force.
Since midnight to the afternoon on September 22, as many as 23 flights were cancelled. Among these, 18 flights were of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and five were of other airlines.
“PIA had to cancel the flights after the Air Force decided to carry out exercises on Motorway,” a senior Civil Aviation Authority official said.
“PIA had informed the passengers ahead of time about the circumstances,” he added.
READ MORE: PIA cancels flights to Northern areas due to airspace closure
Earlier. Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) cancelled its flights to Northern areas following the closure of airspace by Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
“As per directives of CAA, the airspace over Northern areas will remain closed on Wednesday, September 21. Inconvenience regretted,” PIA spokesperson Danyal Gilani announced on Twitter.
Although the reason behind the suspension of flights was not disclosed, reports suggest Pakistan’s warplanes are engaged in a takeoff and landing rehearsal amid threats from India following an attack on its Srinagar military base.
Eighteen Indian soldiers were killed by four militants in the attack on an Army Brigade Headquarters in the Uri area near the Line of Control (LoC) Sunday morning. The assault was among the deadliest in held Kashmir and has sharply ratcheted up tension between the nuclear-armed rivals.
