Narendra Modi's aircraft takes 6,000km detour to Central Asia

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s presidential Boeing 777, Air India One, was forced to take a detour of over 6,000 kilometers during a recent trip to Central Asia. The flight from Delhi to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, which typically takes approximately three hours, lasted nearly nine hours due to regional airspace restrictions.

The detour was necessitated by several geopolitical factors. Pakistan has denied entry to all Indian-registered aircraft since April 2025 following diplomatic tensions related to a terror attack in Kashmir. Additionally, the route through Iranian airspace was avoided due to safety concerns regarding the conflict involving Israel and Iran, as well as India’s political stance. The flight also had to navigate around Chinese airspace restrictions, specifically avoiding Tibet, which added further distance to the journey.

Modi’s mission included a state visit to Uzbekistan to meet President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and attendance at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.