Air India has expanded its international flight schedule, including additional services to the Maldives, as airlines adjust operations in response to disruptions affecting air travel across the Middle East.
The airline announced that 78 additional flights will operate between 10 and 18 March across nine international routes linking Delhi and Mumbai with destinations in Europe, the United States, the Maldives and Sri Lanka. The temporary expansion is intended to accommodate increased demand for alternative travel options as several West Asian air corridors remain restricted due to the ongoing conflict.
Among the routes receiving additional services is the Delhi–Male’ sector, which provides a direct connection between India and the Maldives. The other routes included in the expanded schedule are Delhi–New York (JFK), Delhi–London (Heathrow), Mumbai–London (Heathrow), Delhi–Frankfurt, Delhi–Paris (CDG), Delhi–Amsterdam, Delhi–Zurich and Delhi–Colombo.
Air India Chief Commercial Officer Nipun Aggarwal told Indian media that the airline is maintaining operations using safe alternative routings and that the additional flights are intended to offer passengers more reliable travel options during a period of uncertainty.
In total, the temporary increase will add 17,660 seats across the nine routes. Most European services will be operated using wide-body Boeing 787-8 aircraft, while flights to Male’ and Colombo will be served by Airbus A320neo aircraft.
The move comes as the conflict in the Middle East continues to affect aviation routes and connectivity across the region. The Maldives has also begun to feel the impact of these disruptions, with tourist arrivals declining as travel through Gulf hubs becomes more complicated.
Data from the Ministry of Tourism shows that around 6,000 tourists arrived in the Maldives on 1 January. By Monday, daily arrivals had fallen to about 4,000, reflecting the broader effects of disrupted air travel.
