Oman Air has announced it will reroute all its flights around Iraqi airspace as a result of the escalation in the conflict there between militants loyal to the Islamic State (IS) and Iraqi and Kurdish security forces.
Oman Air’s new CEO Paul Gregorowitsch said: “This measure was taken as part of our ongoing review of flight paths between Muscat and Europe, and follows our decisions in April not to overfly the Ukraine, and a year ago not to overfly Syria. Geopolitical developments are considered alongside a range of other issues and our forward planning can result in changes some time before they become a statutory requirement.”
As well as Oman Air, the list of international carriers currently avoiding Iraqi airspace currently includes: Kuwait Airways, Etihad Airways, British Airways, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Air France, Emirates, KLM and Virgin Atlantic.
The US FAA issued a revised NOTAM last week banning US-based carriers from transiting Iraqi airspace outright.
