Pakistan has declined use of its airspace for flights from JK’s Srinagar to Sharjah, which was revived after 11 years.
Due to the decision, the flight from Srinagar to Sharjah will be more than an hour longer as planes will have to fly via Udaipur, Ahmedabad and Oman. The flight will also be more expensive.
On October 23, Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagged off the inaugural Srinagar-Sharjah flight from the Sheikh Ul-Alam international airport in Srinagar, reviving the direct airlink between the valley and the UAE after 11 years.
The NC leader pointed out that because of Pakistan’s objection to allowing flights originating from Srinagar, the Srinagar-Dubai flight had to make a “technical halt” in Delhi or had to fly south and go around Pakistan airspace, which made the flight completely unviable both in terms of cost and time.
The first international flight from the Srinagar airport to Dubai was started on February 14, 2009 by Air India Express. However, the service was discontinued due to low demand.
Go First, formerly known as GoAir, is the first airline to start direct international connections and direct international cargo operations from Srinagar. It will operate four flights a week between Srinagar and Sharjah