Jordan, Israel, Iraq, Lebanon close airspace as Iran attacks

Several countries in the Middle East have stopped air travel in their airspace due to an upcoming drone attack by Iran on Israel and reports of a group of unmanned aircraft being launched by Tehran.

On April 13, 2024 at 11 pm local time (8 pm UTC), Jordan made the decision to shut down its airspace for a period of three hours. The official notice to airmen (NOTAM) cited "operational reasons" as the cause for the closure. However, the Jordanian Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC) gave a different explanation to the state-owned Al-Mamluka broadcaster, stating that the rising political tensions in the area were the root of the problem. As a result, approximately 40 flights were either cancelled, redirected, or postponed because of the temporary shutdown.

In the past, Jordan has experienced significant GPS disturbance across its land. The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) has requested that "two nearby nations" cease this action. The TRC disclosed that they had proof that these countries were the origin of the disturbance. It's worth noting that Jordan shares borders with Israel and Palestine but not Iran.

According to reports, on April 14, 2024, at 0030L (2130Z), Israel is set to shut down its airspace until 0700L (0400Z) on April 15. The reason for this closure has been linked to "military activity."

On April 14, Iraq shut down its airspace on account of "operational reasons" starting from 2345L (2045Z). This ban was initially supposed to remain in effect until 0530L (0230Z) on April 15.

The airspace of Lebanon will be shut down from 0100L (2200Z on April 14) to 0700L (0400Z) on April 15.

Starting on April 13, 2024, at 1901L (1531Z), Iran has put a stop to all VFR operations in its airspace. This ban will last until April 24, 2024, but military, emergency, and authorized flights are not affected. While the airspace is still available, many airlines seem to be avoiding flying over Iran, except for the ones based in the UAE, like Emirates, flydubai, and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi.

Opinion piece: Additional information regarding later airspace shutdowns has been included. - April 13, 2024 - 9:45 PM Coordinated Universal Time.