Middle East Airspace – Current Operational Picture

Key Points – July 15 update

• The US-Iran ceasefire has effectively broken down, with renewed military action, attacks near the Strait of Hormuz, and Houthi missile attacks in southern Saudi Arabia. But no new Gulf airspace closures or major routing changes so far.
• Most Gulf FIRs remain open to overflights, although most are still using tactical routes and flow management. Kuwait remains the exception – overflights through the OKAC/Kuwait FIR are still prohibited.
• EASA now advises operators to avoid the airspace of Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE and the western Gulf of Oman at all levels.
• The main Europe-Asia routings remain south via Egypt-Saudi-Oman/UAE or north via the Caucasus/Afghanistan.
• GPS jamming/spoofing remains one of the biggest operational issues across the region.

Recent Developments

July 16-17 – More US/Iran strikes

The US-Iran conflict has widened again over the past 48 hours. US strikes have reportedly hit OIZI/Iranshahr airport in the south of the country, plus some targets around the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has attacked some US facilities in Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, plus a US radar station in Oman. Explosions also reported in Doha – likely air defence interceptions. Iran also targeted a US base in Syria but looks like no damage reported. Despite the escalation, there have still not been any new Gulf airspace closures or major airline routing changes. Kuwait remains closed to overflights – other FIRs in the region remain open with temp routes as per the Notams.

July 15 – EASA updates Middle East CZIB again

EASA has updated its Middle East Conflict Zone Information Bulletins following the recent deterioration in the regional security situation.

They’re now advising operators to avoid at all levels in the airspace of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and the Gulf of Oman west of 58°E. Existing CZIBs for Iran, Iraq and Lebanon remain unchanged: avoid their FIRs at all levels.

A separate Information Note covers Israel, Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia. It does not say avoid, but tells operators to take the potential risk into account before operating. 

July 13 – Yemen strike followed by Saudi airport closures

An airstrike hit the runway at OYSN/Sanaa after Yemen’s government said it was trying to stop an Iranian aircraft carrying a Houthi delegation from landing. The Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia and later launched a missile and drone attack that forced the closure of four airports in southern Saudi Arabia (OEAB/Abha, OEGN/Jizan, OENG/Najran and OESH/Sharurah). The airports are currently Notamed closed until at least 1500z on July 16.

July 7-8 – US-Iran fighting resumes

US strikes on Iranian military targets around the Strait of Hormuz resumed on July 7, with Iran responding by launching missile and drone attacks on US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait. Despite the renewed fighting, there was little immediate impact on flight ops – no new Gulf FIR closures or major routing changes, and the main Europe-Asia routes remained via Egypt-Saudi-Oman/UAE or north via Caucasus/Afghan.

Current Airspace Picture

Here’s a quick lowdown on what’s going on in each little bit of airspace…

Kuwait

Kuwait has extended its airspace restrictions until at least Aug 4. Overflights through the OKAC/Kuwait FIR are still not permitted – only flights arriving to or departing from OKKK/Kuwait are allowed, with prior approval.

That makes Kuwait the remaining gap in the middle of the Gulf routing structure. While neighbouring Iraq, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE have all reopened to overflights in some form, operators still need to route around Kuwait, either via the southern Egypt-Saudi-Oman corridor or further north.

Iran

Some overflights above FL285 are possible via specific temporary routes linking Oman/UAE with Central Asia, the Caucasus and Turkey, but western Iran remains heavily restricted. Several radar systems remain degraded, many western airports are still closed or daytime-only, and pretty much everyone continues avoiding the airspace.

Qatar

Qatar has now reopened to overflights. The earlier restrictions on waypoints and arrival/departure route segments have been withdrawn, although some temporary restricted areas and military activity remain. Operationally, things had been getting close to normal again, but EASA now advises operators to avoid the FIR at all levels.

UAE

The UAE remains open to overflights, with traffic managed through a mixture of normal ATS routes and temporary RNAV corridors. GPS interference continues to be one of the biggest operational issues across the FIR. But EASA advises operators to avoid the FIR at all levels.

Bahrain

Bahrain is open to overflights again. Just keep in mind that nearby airspace, especially Kuwait, is still restricted and can affect your routing. EASA also advises operators to avoid the FIR at all levels.

Iraq

Iraq is open for overflights again, but it still doesn’t really bring back the old Europe-Asia corridor because western Iran remains restricted and most operators still consider the ORBB/Baghdad FIR too high risk. Some airlines are using Iraq, but the main flows still seem to be north via the Caucasus/Afghanistan or south via Egypt/Saudi/Oman.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi remains open and is still the main southern bypass link. Traffic levels through the OEJD/Jeddah FIR remain very high, especially between the Gulf and Egypt, with flow measures and tactical routings now a normal part of ops. Opsgroup members are also reporting heavy ATC congestion and blocked transmissions in some sectors (more on that below!)

Four airports in southern Saudi Arabia (OEAB/Abha, OEGN/Jizan, OENG/Najran and OESH/Sharurah) are currently closed following a Houthi missile and drone attack.

Oman

Oman remains one of the most useful FIRs in the region, especially for the southern bypass. It is open, but still part of the managed corridor system, with flow measures and ongoing GNSS interference reports.

Jordan

Open and operating normally. In practice, it’s still not a major transit route for Europe-Asia traffic. Most operators continue to route via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, as they did before the conflict.

Israel

Israel is open again, but ops still aren’t back to normal. Some foreign airlines have resumed services, but most major US and European operators continue to stay away. While the airspace remains available, the risk of short notice disruption remains higher than elsewhere in the region.

Syria

Syria seems to have quietly become part of the regional routing picture again after years of almost no international overflight traffic.

The OSTT/Damascus FIR reopened in early 2025 and some regional carriers are now using Syrian airspace again as an alternative to the more restricted Iran/Iraq option. Most of the traffic currently appears to be Middle East carriers rather than major US or European airlines, which largely continue to avoid the FIR.

The airspace remains high risk. Israeli airstrikes in Syria continue periodically, several countries still prohibit or strongly discourage their operators from entering the OSTT FIR, and ATC capability remains limited. Check safeairspace.net for more info on the airspace risk side of things.

We also spoke to a local Syrian agent (First Aero Services – seemed very helpful! contact info: ops@fasaero.com) about how overflights currently work here in practice. Operators generally need to apply through a local handling/permit company, which coordinates with the Syrian authorities and handles nav fee payments. Current charges are reportedly:

• EUR 70 overflight permit handling fee per leg
• EUR 455 fixed navigation charge per flight
• extra charges for urgent processing or permit revisions

At the moment, the Syria routing still looks more like a temporary workaround being used by regional operators than a mainstream replacement for the old central Middle East corridor.

Armenia/Azerbaijan/Afghanistan

Armenia and Azerbaijan remain important parts of the northern bypass, with steady overflight demand. The main issue is still Afghanistan – the OAKX/Kabul FIR remains Class G with no normal ATS service, so crews still need to use the published contingency routes and operate with TIBA procedures.

So for Europe-Asia traffic or Gulf positioning, the two real options are still the same as we reported before back in March – north via the Caucasus then Afghanistan, or south via Egypt then Saudi then Oman:

Recent Opsgroup Member Reports

We’ve had a lot of useful Airport Spy reports recently from Opsgroup members operating into several Middle East airports: OBBI/Bahrain, OTHH/Doha, OMSJ/Sharjah, OMAD/Abu Dhabi and OEDF/Dammam.

Big theme across all of them is the scale of the GPS jamming/spoofing currently happening around the region. Several reported complete GPS loss on arrival or departure, and interference continuing well into neighbouring FIRs. ATC seems very used to it now, with lots of runway heading departures and radar vectors being issued.

Reports also mentioned fuel delays, extra towing/hangar time, and slower ground handling at some airports. We’ve also had reports of heavy ATC congestion in the OEJD/Jeddah FIR as traffic continues concentrating on the southern bypass via Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Opsgroup members can check Airport Spy in their dashboard for the full reports.

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If you have operated in the region recently and could share your experience, send us an anonymous Airport Spy report or email us at team@ops.group.

More on the topic:

• More: Crisis in Iran: Elevated Airspace Risk
• More: EASA Removes CZIBs: Middle East Risk Gets Harder to Read
• More: 2025 Update: BizAv Ops to Israel
• More: Why EASA has Withdrawn Airspace Warnings for Iran and Israel
• More: Dodging Danger: The Three Routes Through the Middle East

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