Both Israel and Iran have closed their airspace following what Israel’s government described as “preventive” airstrikes on the Iranian capital.
Israel’s transport ministry announced the closure Saturday, citing security developments, and instructed the public to avoid airports until further notice. The ministry said passengers would receive at least 24 hours of warning before flights are permitted to resume. Iran followed with its own airspace shutdown in the wake of the attacks, according to the Associated Press.
The strikes come as diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran remain fragile. The United States has signaled that negotiations to prevent American military action against Iran are still viable, but President Donald Trump has simultaneously moved to reinforce the US military footprint across the Middle East — including deploying a second aircraft carrier to waters near Israel.
The regional aviation picture has been deteriorating for much of the past two years, with airlines repeatedly forced to reroute around restricted zones, absorb higher fuel costs, and traverse airspace over countries like Afghanistan that they would otherwise avoid. The financial toll on carriers operating profitable Middle East routes has been significant.
The latest closures carry echoes of a major disruption last year, when an Iranian strike on the largest American military base in the region prompted Qatar and neighboring countries to shut their skies. That episode left tens of thousands of travelers stranded and overwhelmed operations at Doha’s airport.
With US-Iran tensions still unresolved and a substantial American military buildup now in place across the region, carriers face renewed uncertainty over when normal routing through Israeli and Iranian airspace might be possible again.
