Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon reopen airspace as Iran attacks Israel
Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, and Israel have allowed flights to resume after an Iranian drone strike on Israel that involved multiple unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles. The attack is believed to be in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike on an Iranian embassy in Damascus, Syria, in April 2024 that killed 16 people, including a brigadier general and other IRGC officers.
On April 14, 2024, Israel did not allow any planes to fly over their airspace from 2130Z until 0400Z the next day due to "military activity." However, at 0700Z on Sunday, April 14, they permitted commercial flights to resume as normal.
From 2300L to 0200L on April 13, 2024, Jordan barred all flights from entering its airspace. An announcement regarding the closure attributed it to "operational reasons." Nonetheless, the Jordanian Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC) shared with the state-owned Al-Mamluka broadcaster that intensified geopolitical tensions in the area were the real cause. As a result of the airspace closure, approximately 40 flights were impacted, including cancellations, diversions, and delays.
Jordan and Lebanon have complained about significant GPS disturbance within their territories. The Jordanian Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) has advised their neighboring countries to stop the interference since the sources of the disruption are in those nations. Jordan is adjacent to Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Iraq. These nations are known to host several Iranian proxies.
For certain operational motives, Iraq ceased the use of its airspace on April 14th at 11:45PM local time (8:45PM Coordinated Universal Time), initially up to 5:30AM local time (2:30AM Coordinated Universal Time) on April 15th. However, by 6:00AM Coordinated Universal Time, Iraq had resumed usage of their airspace, as the ICAA announced that the danger had dissipated.
On April 15th, the airspace of Lebanon shut down from 0100L (2200Z on April 14th) until 0700L (0400Z). However, commercial flights have now recommenced departing from Beirut.
Kuwait Airways (KU, Kuwait) changed the routes of all incoming and outgoing flights from locations that were deemed "areas of tension" when the attack occurred.
During the period of April 13-24, 2024, Iran has prohibited all non-essential flights in its airspace, except for military, emergency, and other flights that have prior approval. While Iran's airspace is still accessible, many airlines have decided not to fly over the country. However, some airlines including Qatar Airways, Uzbekistan Airways, as well as UAE-flagged carriers such as Emirates, flydubai, and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi have continued to fly through Iranian airspace. Qantas has announced that its flights from Perth to London Heathrow will avoid Iranian airspace.
Commentary: More information has been included regarding the following closures and re-openings of airspace - dated April 14th, 2024, at 6:51 Coordinated Universal Time.
