Hundreds of British tourists are stranded in South East Asia after Pakistan-India plane clashes force airlines to cancel flights in the region, causing chaos for travellers
- Thai Airways cancelled all European flights, leaving Brits stranded in Asia
- Airlines including Emirates and Qatar Airways have suspended Pakistan flights
- Flights were cancelled amidst the Indian plane shootings by Pakistan
- One stranded traveller says she is stuck in the airport with ‘no food or water’
Hundreds of Brits are stranded at the airport in Thailand today after flights to Europe were cancelled amidst the India plane shootings.
Flag carrier Thai Airways cancelled all its scheduled flights to Europe – including one that had already taken off and was forced to turn back – leaving furious tourists with an uncertain delay at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.
The 13-hour route goes straight across India and passes through Pakistan – risking being affected during the current tension.
Several other airlines, including Emirates and Qatar Airways, suspended flights to Pakistan today too after the South Asian nation closed its air space following heightened tensions with neighbouring India.
Etihad, flydubai, Gulf Air, SriLankan Airlines and Air Canada also suspended services to the country and flight tracking portals showed Singapore Airlines, British Airways and others were forced to reroute flights – leaving travellers in chaos.
Hundreds of British tourists have been left stranded in Bangkok, Thailand, at Suvarnabhumi Airport after Thai Airways were forced to cancel all European flights because of the Indian plane shootings by Pakistan
One flight had already taken off but was forced to turn back to the Bangkok airport once Thai Airways made the decision to cancel its flights
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One British tourist, Nicolle Paisley, who was on the flight which had to turn back said: ‘We’ve been back for hours now, no food or water. No information on our rescheduled flight. Not good enough at all’
The next scheduled flight to London was due to leave Bangkok just after midnight tonight at 12.15am but officials said it would be rescheduled.
Flights to Frankfurt, Paris, Oslo, Milan, Zurich and Copenhagen were also cancelled.
Frustrated backpacker Nicolle Paisley, who was on the flight which turned back earlier today, said she was stuck in limbo between arrivals and immigration.
Thai Airways President Sumeth Damrongchaitham said an urgent meeting had been called to reschedule flights to Europe, which normally pass through airspace affected by the chaos between India and Pakistan
She said: ‘We’ve been back for hours now, no food or water. No information on our rescheduled flight. Not good enough at all.
‘The staff aren’t doing much to help. I’m already at the airport. They’ve told us to stay in line.
‘They can’t help as they don’t have the answers either. We just want to know when our flight is.’
Pakistan carried out air strikes and shot down two Indian military jets today, the day after Indian warplanes struck inside Pakistan for the first time since a war in 1971, prompting leading powers to urge both of the nuclear-armed countries to show restraint.
Tension has been elevated since a suicide car bombing by Pakistan-based militants in Indian-controlled Kashmir killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police on Feb. 14, but the risk of conflict rose dramatically on Tuesday when India launched an air strike on what it said was a militant training base.
Thai Airways president said: ‘The conflict situation between Pakistan and India has affected Thai Airways flights. Flights also had to turn back to Bangkok, including the London and Frankfurt flights’
The next scheduled flight to London was due to leave just after midnight tonight but officials said it would be rescheduled. Flights to Frankfurt, Paris, Oslo, Milan, Zurich and Copenhagen have also been cancelled
Thai Airways had to cancel all of their European flights because the flight path crosses through the chaos between India and Pakistan. Thai Airways president Sumeth Damrongchaitham said an urgent meeting had been called to reschedule flights to Europe
Chris McAloran said he was waiting for updates from the Thai Airways.
He added: ‘My wife is also waiting at the same flight to get home for her father’s funeral.’
Thai Airways president, Sumeth Damrongchaitham, said an urgent meeting had been called to reschedule flights to Europe, which normally pass through airspace affected by the chaos between India and Pakistan.
He said: ‘The conflict situation between Pakistan and India has affected Thai Airways flights. Flights also had to turn back to Bangkok, including the London and Frankfurt flights.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have forced many airlines to cancel flights which fly over the chaotic zone following an Indian plane shooting by Pakistan earlier today
Stranded: Hundreds of tourists have been left stranded in Bangkok after the major flight disruptions. Pakistan carried out air strikes and shot down two Indian military jets today, the day after Indian warplanes struck inside Pakistan for the first time since a war in 1971, prompting leading powers to urge both of the nuclear-armed countries to show restraint
‘By closing the airspace, every flight from Thailand to Europe has been affected. For flights that are going to depart this evening will call an urgent meeting to consider the impact of such events.’
Mark Martin, founder and chief executive at Martin Consulting India, said about 800 flights a day use the India-Pakistan air corridor, making it ‘very critical’.
He said: ‘You can’t overfly China, so you have to overfly Pakistan and India and go to Southeast Asia and Australia.
‘Most of the traffic destined for Bangkok and Singapore will have to fly over Iran and then possibly take a detour.’
International airlines that normally transit between Indian and Pakistani airspace have been forced to reroute, including flights by Singapore Airlines, Finnair, British Airways, Aeroflot, and Air India, according to online portal flightradar24.com which tracks the movement of planes globally.
Thai Airways has 13 routes to Europe: Denmark, Norway, Belgium, France, Russia, Germany Frankfurt, Germany Munich, Switzerland, Sweden, United Kingdom, Italy Rome, Italy Milan and Austria.
Thai Aiways has 13 routes to Europe that include the United Kingdom, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Russia, France, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and Austria
The president of Thai Airways said: ‘By closing the airspace, every flight from Thailand to Europe has been affected. For flights that are going to depart this evening will call an urgent meeting to consider the impact of such events’
One stranded Brit has been waiting for her flight so she can return home for her father’s funeral. Her husband, Chris McAloran said: ‘My wife is also waiting at the same flight to get home for her father’s funeral’
Qatar Airways said in a statement it has temporarily suspended flights to eight cities in India and Pakistan ‘due to the ongoing situation on the India-Pakistan border’ and that its flights routed over the India-Pakistan air space may be delayed due to rerouting in the area.
Bahrain’s Gulf Air said it had suspended all fights to and from Pakistan due to closure of airspace while low-cost carrier flydubai said it is reviewing its schedule. Emirates and Etihad also said they had suspended some flights to Pakistan.
All flights from Kabul to India have been cancelled until further notice while India’s state-run carrier Air India has cancelled its flights until the first week of March, an airline official in Kabul said.
Air Canada said it has temporarily suspended service to India because of Pakistan’s airspace closure.
Singapore Airlines’ Europe-bound flights would need to make refuelling stops, the airline said in a statement. British Airways said it is monitoring the situation closely.
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