India, Pakistan Conflict Affects International Flights Transiting Countries' Airspaces, Airports Closed

UPDATE: 4:55 a.m. EST — Indian media reported that the order to shut down eight airports over the northern states of Jammua and Kashmir, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh were withdrawn and flight operations have already resumed from some airports, including Jammu. This comes hours after reports surfaced that airports in places including Amritsar, Jammu, Srinagar and Leh, Kullu-Manali, Kangra and Shimla were being closed amid the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan.

After India claimed to have shot down a Pakistan Air Force's F-16, their military said they had also shot down two IMF aircraft and had one pilot in custody. While India denied these claims initially saying no Indian fighter jets suffered damage, in a press briefing, a spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs said they lost one of its jets and the pilot is missing.

MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said authorities are trying to confirm the claims made by Pakistan that the missing pilot was in their custody.

Original story:

International flights that transit between Indian and Pakistani airspaces were affected early Wednesday due to the ongoing conflict between the two nations, which claimed to have shot down each others' military aircraft in the morning. Local media reports said some flights were returning to origin, while others were seeking alternate routing.

The latest incident comes as Pakistan halted domestic and international flight operations from Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Sialkot and Islamabad airports. India also shut down Srinagar, Jammu and Leh airports for civilian air traffic Wednesday amid escalation of cross-Line of Control shelling between armies of both nations. Airports at the northern cities of Chandigarh and Amritsar were also closed, according to airline officials.

"The civilian air traffic has been suspended temporarily in view of the emergency,” an official of the Airport Authority of India told local media PTI.

A Pakistan military spokesperson, on Wednesday, said they shot down two Indian aircraft inside its airspace and captured one pilot while the other is in hospital. However, these claims could not be confirmed. A government source in New Delhi told news agency PTI that no Indian fighter jets suffered damage.

Indian media reported earlier that Pakistan Air Force's F-16 that violated Indian air space was shot down in Indian retaliatory fire 1.8 miles within Pakistan territory in Lam valley, Nowshera sector.

This is a developing story.