Delhi airspace to remain closed for an hour from Sept 18-20

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to shut Delhi airspace for over an hour for three days starting from Friday in view of the preparations for the carnival ‘Indradhanush’ to mark the golden jubilee celebrations of the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War.

The decision has already been conveyed to all airline operators so that they take advance measures and reschedule operations during the airspace closure period accordingly, sources said. “Delhi airspace up to 50 miles will remain close for commercial flights between 1600 hours and 1710 hours from September 18 to September 20,” one of the sources said.

The move is to facilitate rehearsal for Indradhanush on Friday and Saturday and also the actual show on Sunday.

A six-day exhibition, “Shauryanjali” showcasing major battle scenes and captured tanks of the Pakistani Army during the 1965 war, is going on at Central Delhi’s Rajpath since Tuesday as a part of golden jubilee celebrations of the war. The exhibition will end on September 20 with the carnival ‘Indradhanush’ being organised. It will see the Sukhoi 30 fighter jets, flying in “Missing Man” formation in action along with Mi-17 V5 helicopters. IAF skydiving team Akash Ganga will do a para-drop from the helicopters on the India Gate lawns. Indian Army helicopters will also do a flypast.