Iraq Lifts Civilian Flight Restrictions in Western Regions
The decision transfers airspace previously reserved for military operations to the country’s airport and aviation authorities, according to Iraq’s Ministry of Transport.
Iraq has removed restrictions on civilian flights in its western regions, transferring airspace previously used exclusively for military operations to the country’s airport and aviation authorities. Officials said the move will enable the redesign of air routes and the creation of new civilian corridors, while remaining technical and organizational measures are completed. The decision follows the use of parts of western Iraq in military operations against the Islamic State in 2016 and 2017 and is described by the Transport Ministry as part of preparations linked to the withdrawal of the international coalition and the transfer of airspace responsibility to Iraqi authorities.
Iraq has lifted restrictions on civilian flights in the western parts of the country, reopening airspace that had been reserved exclusively for military purposes, the Iraqi Ministry of Transport announced.
According to a report by IRNA citing RT Arabic, the restricted airspace has been transferred to Iraq’s General Company for Airports and Air Navigation. Civilian flights are now permitted in the areas, although the technical and organizational measures required for the full implementation of the decision are still being completed.
Ihab Saad Karim, director general of Iraq’s General Company for Airports and Air Navigation, said the airspace management department at the Air Operations Center had formally announced the removal of the restrictions. He said the decision was coordinated with the office of Iraq’s commander-in-chief of the armed forces and followed institutional and technical efforts aimed at improving efficiency and easing air traffic.
Karim said the change would allow Iraqi aviation authorities to redraw existing air routes and establish new routes for civilian flights. He added that the move would reduce flight restrictions, strengthen imports and improve the management of Iraqi airspace.
The western areas had been designated for military operations in 2016 and 2017, when parts of Iraq’s western desert were used in operations against the Islamic State, according to the report. The airspace restrictions remained associated with that military use until the latest decision to return the areas to civilian aviation management.
Hussein Ahmed, a spokesman for Iraq’s Ministry of Transport, said the lifting of the restrictions was part of preparations connected to the withdrawal of the international coalition from Iraq and the transfer of responsibility for the country’s airspace to Iraqi authorities.
Ahmed said the necessary technical and organizational steps to implement the decision fully would be completed soon. The announcement did not provide details on the specific routes that would be reopened, the timing of new civilian services or the number of flights expected to use the airspace.
The decision gives Iraqi aviation officials an opportunity to reorganize air traffic across the western regions after years in which the area’s airspace was designated for military activity. Its practical impact will depend on the completion of the remaining procedures and the subsequent creation or revision of civilian flight routes.