Air India Wants to Cross a Mountain Range to Dodge a Closed Sky

India is in talks with China over using airspace above Xinjiang, specifically near Hotan, as a way around Pakistan’s closed airspace. The corridor would give Indian airlines another westbound option toward Europe and North America.

Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian carriers in April 2025, forcing long detours. Air India says the closure costs about $455 million a year in lost pre-tax profit, with fuel costs up as much as 29 percent and some long-haul flights taking up to three hours longer.

Air India estimates the Hotan corridor could cut losses by about $1.13 million a week. The airline suspended its Delhi to Washington route in August 2025 and has struggled to keep Mumbai and Bengaluru flights to San Francisco efficient. Talks have run for more than a year and involve India’s civil aviation minister, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu.

There is no deal yet, and the route would depend on a diplomatic agreement as much as an aviation one. Still, it shows how geopolitics shapes the flights travelers can buy. If you are booking between India and North America or Europe, expect longer block times and sometimes higher fares until the airspace picture improves. Air India is also adjusting under new leadership, with safety, reliability, profitability and disciplined growth named as priorities.

Sources: Skift, Upgraded Points