North Korea Airspace Status & Restrictions 2026
FIR: ZKKP (Pyongyang) · Authority: General Administration of Civil Aviation of DPRK · Last updated: May 2026
The Pyongyang FIR (ZKKP) is effectively avoided by international civil aviation. FAA SFAR 79 prohibits US civil operations west of 132°E and was extended through September 2028. EASA CZIB advises EU operators not to enter the FIR at any flight level. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) does not consistently participate in ICAO NOTAM distribution; missile launch activity is typically learned about through Japanese and South Korean advisories rather than from Pyongyang directly. Air China is the only carrier that has operated scheduled service to Pyongyang in recent years; through-traffic essentially does not exist.
Current Restrictions
The FAA's Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 79 prohibits US civil aviation operations within the Pyongyang Flight Information Region west of 132° East longitude. The most recent extension, published in the Federal Register in September 2023, runs the prohibition through 18 September 2028. The FAA notes that medium- and short-range ballistic systems tested from the DPRK have impacted east of the 132°E boundary, so even compliant operators are not geographically shielded from launch debris.
EASA maintains Conflict Zone Information Bulletin 2017-06R2 covering the entire ZKKP FIR at all flight levels. The bulletin advises EU operators not to enter Pyongyang FIR airspace, citing unannounced launch activity, the DPRK air-defence environment, and the absence of standard civil aviation coordination at FIR boundaries with Shenyang (China), Incheon (Republic of Korea), and Fukuoka (Japan).
Transport Canada and the UK Civil Aviation Authority maintain parallel advisories. Safe Airspace classifies ZKKP at the highest do-not-fly tier alongside Libya and Yemen.
Recent NOTAM Patterns (last 12-24 months)
A defining characteristic of the Pyongyang FIR is that the DPRK does not reliably issue NOTAMs for missile launch activity. Civil aviation operators learn about launches through Japanese and Republic of Korea (ROK) NOTAMs covering downrange splash zones, through Japan Coast Guard navigational warnings, and through post-launch press statements from Japan's Ministry of Defense or the ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Through 2025 and into early 2026, missile launch activity per Japan/Korea NOTAM continued at episodic intervals, including a long-range test in late 2025 with debris trajectory crossing established Pacific oceanic routes, and a series of shorter-range launches into the Sea of Japan that prompted temporary rerouting of regional services. A satellite launch attempt in 2025 produced advisory NOTAMs from Japanese authorities covering predicted booster fall zones.
No NOTAMs are published from the DPRK side. The information gap is structural, not episodic, and is the central reason civil operators avoid the FIR regardless of the day-to-day political picture.
Major Airline Policies
Prohibited from operations west of 132°E under SFAR 79 through September 2028.
Follow EASA CZIB 2017-06R2 — avoid all flight levels within the FIR.
UK CAA and Transport Canada advise against any operations in the FIR.
Historically the only foreign scheduled operator to Pyongyang (PEK–FNJ). Service has been intermittently suspended and resumed.
DPRK national carrier. Operates within ZKKP and limited regional service to China and Russia.
Historical Context (Factual)
The FAA first restricted US civil flights in the Pyongyang FIR following the 1983 KAL 007 shootdown over Sakhalin and subsequent incidents in the region. The current SFAR framework was introduced in 2015 and has been extended in five-year increments. EASA's CZIB for ZKKP was first issued in 2017 and is now at revision 2.
From 1998 to 2017, ZKKP was used by a limited number of carriers for trans-Polar and Asia–Europe routings via "ROMEO" routes through the Sea of Japan. After a series of unannounced launches in 2017 crossed those tracks, all major operators withdrew. The FIR has been effectively unused for international through-traffic since.
Operating Airports & Carriers
Pyongyang Sunan International — primary international gateway. Air Koryo hub; Air China seasonal service from Beijing.
Hamhung — domestic operations.
Wonsan Kalma — historic civil/military dual use, limited civil traffic.
Sources
FAA — Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 79 (Pyongyang FIR extension, Federal Register, September 2023, effective through 18 September 2028).
EASA — Conflict Zone Information Bulletin 2017-06R2, Airspace of North Korea — Pyongyang Flight Information Region.
Transport Canada — Inventory of alerts for Canadian airlines flying near or over foreign conflict zones.
Safe Airspace — North Korea country page.
UK Civil Aviation Authority — Overseas territories and conflict zone notices.
Related
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