Air India suspends flights to Chicago, Shanghai as Iran war, rising jet fuel prices force route rejig – Firstpost

Air India has suspended flights to Chicago and Shanghai while scaling back services across several international routes as the ongoing Iran-linked West Asia conflict and record-high jet fuel prices continue to disrupt global aviation operations.

The
airline on Wednesday announced a temporary rationalisation of its international network between June and August 2026, saying prolonged airspace restrictions and sharply higher operating costs have made several long-haul routes commercially unviable.

Under the revised schedule, Air India will suspend Delhi-Chicago and Delhi-Shanghai services through August, while reducing frequencies on multiple routes connecting India with North America, Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia and SAARC nations.

Flights between Delhi and San Francisco will be reduced from 10 weekly to seven weekly through August, while Delhi-Toronto services will drop from 10 weekly to five weekly till July before returning to daily operations in August. Delhi-Vancouver flights will also be reduced from seven weekly to five weekly.

The carrier has also temporarily suspended Delhi-Newark and Mumbai-New York (JFK) operations, although Mumbai-Newark flights will increase from three weekly services to daily operations.

In Europe, Air India has cut Delhi-Paris flights from 14 weekly to seven weekly, while services to Copenhagen, Milan, Vienna, Zurich and Rome will also see lower frequencies.

Australia-bound services have also been impacted, with Delhi-Melbourne and Delhi-Sydney flights reduced from daily operations to four weekly flights each.
Across Asia, the airline has suspended Chennai-Singapore, Mumbai-Dhaka and Delhi-Malé services through August. Frequencies on routes to Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Kathmandu, Colombo and Dhaka have also been reduced.

The airline said it will continue operating more than 1,200 international flights every month despite the reductions, maintaining services across five continents.

The route rejig comes as airlines globally grapple with soaring aviation turbine fuel prices triggered by the escalating conflict in Western Asia. Longer flight paths due to restricted airspace over parts of the Middle East and surrounding regions have also increased fuel burn and operational costs.

Air India said affected passengers will be offered alternative flights, free date changes or full refunds wherever applicable. The airline added that it may undertake further network adjustments if the “extraordinary operating environment” continues.