Air Canada suspending flights between Vancouver and Delhi due to Ukraine conflict

Air Canada will suspend direct flights between Vancouver and Delhi this summer due to the difficulty of avoiding Russian and Ukrainian airspace en route to the Indian capital.

Air Canada will suspend direct flights between Vancouver and Delhi this summer due to the difficulty of avoiding Russian and Ukrainian airspace en route to the Indian capital.

The airline announced the suspension of flights, which will begin June 2 on the Vancouver-to-Delhi route and June 4 in the opposite direction, in a statement on Wednesday.

"The route is operationally constrained because of extended flying times and a refueling stop that is required due to the current flight paths taken to go around Russian and Ukraine airspace," the statement reads.

"Summer wind and weather conditions in South Asia are expected to compound these constraints, making the route unviable during this period."

Vancouver-to-Delhi flights are scheduled to resume on Sept. 6 and Delhi-to-Vancouver flights are scheduled to resume on Sept. 8, Air Canada said.

Passengers who have already booked flights during the affected time period will be automatically rescheduled onto alternate flights, the airline said, adding that those who purchased through third-party travel agencies or websites should contact those providers directly for their new itineraries.

Other Air Canada flights between Delhi and Canada will continue to be offered during the suspension. The airline said flights from Delhi to Toronto and Montreal use different flight paths that are not constrained by the same factors as the Vancouver route.