Airspace closed across Middle East as US-Israel strike Iran

Airspace across much of the Middle East has been shut down and international flights thrown into chaos after coordinated military strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran on Saturday, Febuary 28.

US and Israeli forces attacked Iran on Saturday morning in what the two countries described as a ‘pre-emptive’ strike against a Tehran government intent on developing nuclear weapons. The attack prompted retaliation from Iran, with missiles reported to have targeted Israel and countries across the Middle East.

In the immediate aftermath of the strikes, several countries announced full or partial closures of their skies to civilian air traffic:

• Iran’s entire airspace was closed indefinitely following the attacks, halting all civilian flights.
• Israel also shut its airspace to civilian aircraft after launching what it described as pre-emptive strikes against Iranian targets.
• Iraq and Kuwait confirmed complete closures of their airspace.
• United Arab Emirates (UAE) imposed a temporary and partial closure of its skies as a precautionary security measure.
• Qatar and Bahrain halted commercial flights amid heightened threats and regional instability.
• Jordan and Syria also restricted airspace in parts of their territories for safety reasons.

Flight-tracking data showed vast swathes of the Middle Eastern sky virtually empty, with civilian aircraft rerouted or grounded as carriers scrambled to adapt.

Carriers including Air France, Air India, Turkish Airlines, Norwegian, Air Algerie, and Lufthansa announced widespread cancellations.

Flight tracking website FlightAware said more than 9,600 flights had been delayed globally and more than 500 cancelled worldwide as of 1030 GMT.