Since the Oct 2024 rocket attacks between Iran and Israel, the en-route traffic situation has since largely returned to normal. Most operators continue to avoid Iran and Israel. Iran in particular has a heightened risk of misidentification or interception for overflights. Several countries have issued airspace warnings for Iran - the US continues to ban N-reg aircraft from the airspace. Middle East transits should consider going south via Egypt/Saudi instead.
The
primary risk is a misident by Iranian air defense systems. Iran has shown willingness to use long-range, advanced anti-aircraft-capable weapons during heightened tensions and in close proximity to heavily flown international air routes (for example: the shoot-down of Ukraine Int Airlines flight 752 over Tehran). There is also a potential for Iranian surface-to-surface missile fire from western Iran, targeting terrorist positions in Iraq.
The
secondary risks come from GPS jamming (including in overwater airspace over the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman), and GPS spoofing.
Major events:Oct 2024: Iranian rocket attack on Israel, and Israeli rocket attack on Iran in response.
Apr 2024: Israel rocket attack on Iran. Iran temporarily closed the western part of the FIR.
Feb 2024: Report of GPS spoofing on airway M701 from ENEDA to NAGRO - the closest airway to Iraqi airspace. One GPS showed no position and the remaining GPS and all 3 IRS showed radically different positions.
Jan 2024: Pakistan launched retaliatory air strikes into southeastern Iran, after Iran carried out strikes in Pakistan the previous day.
Sep 2023: Several reports of GPS spoofing in northern Iraq, plus some in northern Iran.
Jul 2023: Four countries took Iran to the UN court over the the shootdown of UIA flight 752 over Tehran in Jan 2020. Part of their allegations were that Iran has still not provided sufficient evidence that measures are now in place to prevent this kind of incident from happening again.
Jan 2023: Lufthansa temporarily suspended all flights to Iran as a precaution, after an Israeli drone attack on a munitions factory located near the central city of Isfahan.
Jan 2020: Iranian Armed Forces shot-down Ukraine Int Airlines flight 752 over Tehran, having mistaken the aircraft radar return for an inbound missile. Just hours prior to the shoot-down, the US FAA issued “Emergency Order” Notams banning all US operators from overflying the airspace of Iraq and Iran. This was in response to an Iranian missile strike on US military bases in Iraq, which had occurred earlier that night.
June 2019: Iran shot down a US military unmanned aircraft operating in airspace over the Gulf of Oman with a SAM system.
Since 2017: Iran has conducted multiple ballistic missile test launches without issuing any Notams to warn civil operators, the latest taking place in late Dec 2019.