EU aviation body reinstates West Asia flights warning as fighting resumes

The advisory asking airlines not to operate within the airspace of Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon has been extended until the end of August

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on Tuesday reinstated and toughened its warning to airlines operating in West Asia, telling them to avoid the airspace of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and over the Gulf of Oman as the US-Iran war flared up again.

Just a week ago, EASA withdrew its previous advisory following a brief easing of regional tensions as a result of last month's interim ceasefire between Tehran and Washington. That warning had asked airlines to exercise caution when operating within the airspace of these countries, as well as Israel, Jordan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia.

The new, more restrictive advisory is valid until Jul 29.

Iran fired ballistic missiles at a US air base in Jordan on Tuesday, while US forces launched waves of attacks for the third successive night after Iran said on Saturday it was closing the Strait of Hormuz. This move prompted US President Donald Trump to reinstate a blockade of Iranian shipping and propose a 20 percent fee to guard the vital waterway.

"The presence of major US military facilities in the region increases the likelihood that the states covered by this Conflict Zone Information Bulletin may be directly exposed to Iranian missile and drone attacks," EASA said, citing also the risk of misidentification of civil aircraft by US and other air defence systems.

Separately, EASA's advisory asking airlines not to operate within the airspace of Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon was extended last week until the end of August.