New Delhi, Jan. 16 -- International flight operations connecting India with West Asia, Europe and the US were disrupted early on Thursday after Iran temporarily shut its airspace amid concerns about possible military action between the United States and Iran, forcing airlines to re-route, divert and cancel several long-haul services. The Tehran flight information region (FIR) was closed for all flights at 3.45am IST, causing immediate operational flight disruptions for carriers operating over the region. "During the closure, no overflights were permitted. Only international civil flights arriving into or departing from Iran with prior permission from the Iran Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) were allowed," an official aware of the development said. The sudden closure severely impacted flights using air traffic service route G452 - a critical airway for aircraft flying from north and west India towards Iran, the Gulf, Turkey and onward to Europe. Meanwhile, a New York-bound Air India flight, which was forced to return to Delhi due to the temporary closure of the Iranian airspace, sustained engine damage after sucking in a cargo container while taxiing at the IGI Airport, officials aware of the matter said....