Pakistan Reverses Airspace Ban on Taiwanese Airlines, Grants Overflight Approvals

ISLAMABAD — October 28, 2026 — Pakistan Taiwan airspace ban reversal was officially announced on Wednesday as aviation authorities restored overflight permissions for Taiwanese carriers, reversing a brief airspace closure implemented in alignment with the One China policy.

Civil Aviation Authority Approves Overflight Permits

According to reports published by Bloomberg, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of Pakistan has formally granted overflight permissions to Taiwan’s major carriers, EVA Airways Corp. and China Airlines Ltd. The official authorization permits both air carriers to utilize Pakistani airspace from October 28 through March 27.

The reversal follows a sudden restriction over the preceding weekend. Speaking earlier to Bloomberg News, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif stated that the Aviation Division was strictly adhering to the One China policy, which recognizes mainland China, and had restricted overflight rights exclusively to mainland Chinese air carriers.

Immediate Impact on Asia-Europe Flight Routes

Tracking data from Flightradar24 revealed that Taiwanese airlines began re-routing Asia-Europe commercial flights starting the morning of October 25, halting all transit through Pakistani airspace:

• Route Diversions: Over a dozen commercial flights operated by EVA Airways and China Airlines were forced to divert their flight paths over Russian airspace to reach European destinations.

• Fuel and Cost Burden: Re-routing around South Asia and taking longer corridors via Russia or the Middle East added several hours to flight durations, resulting in significant jet fuel consumption and operational costs for Taiwanese carriers.

• Pre-Ban Dependency: Flight tracking data indicated that on October 24 alone, at least 14 flights belonging to the two Taiwanese carriers relied directly on Pakistani air corridors.

Diplomatic Context and Policy Calibration

Industry analysts noted that Pakistan’s initial restriction was stricter than mainland China’s own operational rules, as Beijing continues to permit Taiwanese commercial aircraft to navigate its domestic airspace.

While Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Authority refrained from commenting on specific route diversions, officials confirmed that Taiwanese carriers were never formally prohibited from utilizing Russian airspace, despite voluntarily avoiding it following the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. The timely issuance of overflight approvals by Pakistan restores critical air connectivity along major international transit corridors.