Active — international closed

Iranian Airspace Q1–Q2 2026

FIR: OIIX (Tehran) · Sources: Safe Airspace · EASA · IranWarLive · Caspian Post · Crystal Travel · Universal Weather

TL;DR

Tehran Flight Information Region (OIIX) closed to international civilian aviation following the February 28, 2026 regional military escalation. A US-Iran ceasefire was announced on April 8, 2026 and extended on April 21. Iranian domestic flights resumed on April 22, 2026 after a 50-day wartime suspension; international routes remained suspended as of the briefing date. Iran maintains a high alert level for air defence, creating elevated misidentification risk within OIIX. Major Western carriers continue to avoid the corridor, rerouting via Egypt/Saudi (south) or Caucasus-Central Asia (north).

Hub FIR

OIIX

International status

Closed

Domestic status

Resumed Apr 22

Ceasefire date

Apr 8 + Apr 21

Timeline of events

28 FEB 2026

Regional military escalation begins

Cross-border kinetic activity across the Middle East with airspace consequences. Iranian airspace declared closed to international civil aviation; subsequent missile and drone activity across the region prompted further regional airspace closures (see Gulf 12-FIR Shutdown for full event coverage).
8 APR 2026

US-Iran temporary ceasefire announced

Per Safe Airspace and industry reporting, a temporary ceasefire between the United States and Iran was announced on April 8, 2026. Active intense conflict with kinetic events transitioned to a state of heightened tension with limited, sporadic kinetic events of low intensity.
21 APR 2026

Ceasefire extended

The April 8 ceasefire was extended on April 21, 2026. Iranian airspace remained closed to international civilian aviation during this period.
22 APR 2026

Iranian domestic flights resume after 50-day suspension

Iran's domestic aviation network resumed operations after a 50-day wartime suspension. International routes remained suspended; Tehran FIR (OIIX) closed to international civilian aviation as of 23 April 2026.
4 MAY 2026 — SUBSEQUENT EVENT

Iranian missile barrage on UAE

First post-April-ceasefire strikes: Iran launched missiles and drones against UAE territory on 4 May, prompting partial closure of Emirates FIR (see UAE airspace briefing). Demonstrated that the ceasefire was limited in scope.

Current OIIX status (as of briefing date)

●
International civilian aviation: closed. Tehran FIR not accepting overflight requests from non-Iranian carriers.
●
Iranian domestic aviation: resumed April 22 after 50-day suspension. Operating within Iranian domestic network.
●
Air defence posture: Iran maintains a high alert level for air force and air defence units nationwide. Per Safe Airspace, this creates elevated risk of misidentification within OIIX.
●
EASA Conflict Zone Information Bulletin: in force covering Middle East and Persian Gulf airspace, revised periodically.

Carrier reroute patterns

Most Western carriers continue to avoid OIIX. Two dominant reroute corridors emerged in Q2 2026:

Corridor	FIRs used	Carriers
South: Mediterranean → Egypt → Saudi	LGGG · LCCC · HECC · OEJN/OERR	Most European long-haul, Gulf carriers
North: Turkey → Caucasus → Central Asia	LTAA · UDDD · UBBA · UTAK · UTAA	European carriers Asia routes

See: Azerbaijan Baku bypass corridor · Red Sea / Bab el-Mandeb corridor

Affected route categories

→
Europe-Asia long-haul: most affected category. Pre-2026, Iran was a common transit FIR for Europe-Dubai, Europe-Singapore, Europe-Bangkok routes. Now consistently routed around.
→
India-Europe (non-Indian carriers): Pakistan FIRs closed to Indian carriers since April 2025; combined with Iran closure, options narrow further. Most flights via Oman (OOMM) + Saudi corridor.
→
India-Europe (Indian carriers): forced via OOMM (Oman) corridor + Saudi/Egypt. Block time impact 30–90 min vs pre-closure.
→
Gulf-Europe: handled via Saudi/Egypt corridor without major time impact.

Outlook

As of the briefing date (May 2026), the situation is characterized by:

•
No publicly announced timeline for Iranian international airspace reopening
•
Continued EASA CZIB coverage and FAA advisory in force
•
Periodic kinetic events possible despite ceasefire (May 4 UAE strikes demonstrate)
•
Reroute corridors (Baku, Saudi/Egypt) operating as new operational default
•
Aviation war-risk insurance markets continuing to price elevated regional risk

Sources

Safe Airspace (OPSGROUP) — Iran country page, conflict zone advisory database
EASA — Conflict Zone Information Bulletin for Middle East and Persian Gulf airspace
IranWarLive — Iran Airspace Status April 2026 (live NOTAMs and closures)
Caspian Post — "Which Airlines Are Avoiding Middle East Airspace Amid Iran-US Tensions"
Crystal Travel — "Iran Airspace Reopens 2026" coverage of domestic resumption
Universal Weather — Middle East Airspace Closures operational impact

For airlines, OTAs, insurance underwriters

FlySafe provides continuously-updated indices for OIIX and adjacent Middle East FIRs. Real-time advisory state and source-attributed event tracking via API.

Request sandbox API key →