Air India seeks to use airspace over Xinjiang as financial woes mount

It urges Indian govt to request access as Pakistan’s airspace ban takes a toll

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Air India has been seeking to rebuild its reputation and international network after a London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed in Gujarat in June, killing 260 people and forcing it to briefly cut flights for safety checks. That effort is being complicated by the closure of Pakistan's airspace to Indian carriers.

(PHOTO: EPA-EFE)

Air India is lobbying the Indian government to convince China to let the airline use a sensitive military airspace zone in Xinjiang to shorten routes as the financial toll from a ban on Indian carriers flying over Pakistan mounts, a company document shows.

The unusual request comes just weeks after direct India-China flights resumed following a five-year hiatus resulting from a Himalayan border clash between the two nations.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) holds a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India following its November 2024 merger with Vistara, with Indian conglomerate Tata Sons owning the remainder.

SIA’s share of losses from associate Air India saw the group’s second-quarter earnings sink 82.1 per cent year on year to $52.4 million, despite operating profit rising 22.4 per cent to $398.4 million and revenue improved 2.2 per cent to $4.9 billion.

Air India has been seeking to rebuild its reputation and international network after a London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed in Gujarat in June, killing 260 people and forcing it to briefly cut flights for safety checks.

But that effort is being complicated by the closure of Pakistan airspace to Indian carriers since tensions erupted in late April.