A vast majority of airlines in the world avoid Syrian airspace. This is due to a combination of many governments prohibiting their airlines from flying through Syrian airspace, and also for safety reasons, given the risk of air strikes. For example, just last week I flew from Beirut to Dubai on Emirates, and below you…
Continue reading: Qatar Airways Now Flying Through Syrian Airspace
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Do they not use Israeli air space either? I assumed they could just overfly Israel, Jordan and Iraq.
Without pretending to be a specialist of the Middle East, it seems obvious even to me that the situation has changed in Syria. Even if the victory of the Asad regime is not the preferred outcome of the West, has improved the safety situation in the Syrian airspace significantly. I would not be surprised to see more airlines returning.
Ben, a point of terminology here. "Air strike" in the military aviation context refers to an attack against a ground target by enemy aircraft or missiles. I think what you mean is more accurately referred to as "shootdowns".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airliner_shootdown_incidents
This is bad news for MEA. They had the edge for the shorter trips to the gulf, now Qatar is ruining it for them!
This was in the news few days ago. I'm surprised you brought it up just today.
Looks more like avoiding Israeli airspace.
I also thought Syria closed the airspace and they will shoot down anything flying without permission. Not airlines are avoiding because US airstrike.
Makes sense to me. Shorter route. The airliner is going to be at about 35,000 feet or so. Far to high to be "ground striking" anything. In addition, when all the Western powers start leaving Syria alone (it is their country after all), then Syrian airspace will not have hostile planes flying around and any potential threat to the airliner is null.
@Sam
it is my understanding that no flight to/from Beirut (BEY) /Lebanon are entitled to fly over Israeli airpace
Yeah, you're flight looks more like a case of avoiding israeli airspace that Syrian airspace, could have been a very minimal detour if they'd just gone through israeli airspace!
@Ron B
That is incorrect. Present day attack munitions have very high precision. B-2 can do a strike from 50,000 feet.
Not just bombers, most USAF fighter jets can carry JDAM which can be dropped from 45,000 feet with accuracy of 20 feet from target most of the time.
So no airliners are safe from mistaken identity at 35,000 feet.
President Trump -- the best President the USA has ever had -- clearly Tweeted "100 percent Caliphate victory!" and "We just took over 100 percent caliphate" so, yeah, it's 100 percent safe. Because HE knows!!
I am a fan of Sean M's comments. He is truly legendary in his knowledge of all this stuff.
So, for the semantic pedants, would that mean a strike on an air target from the ground would be called a "ground strike" ?
I honestly do not like this a bit....
"Pacified" or not, Syria is a nasty place, with countless factions still at large and weaponized. They just have been "shrunk".
The large powers all have, to different degrees, interests for "incidents" to happen or to be prevented. "Incidents" like the shooting of Malaysia MH 17 above Eastern Ukraine by a Russian battery which supposedly was not even there.
As I am recounting in a book soon to be published, MH 17 was shot upon rogue orders by a Khirgyz officer sold to Chechen and Islamist agendas, who was chiefly looking to create an "incident" pegging Russia and the USA against each other. He succeeded perfectly.
This exactly what could happen over Syria.
Actually, I do find this troubling enough to seriously reconsider a flight booked for myself soon between Tunis and Doha. Because of the blockade, QR cannot fly over the Sinai and Saudi Arabia as illustrated in Ben's showing of the EK flight. The next "most economical" route is over Syria and Iraq.
I personally do not wish to fly that route and anm evaluating my options.
@Henry Young
That isn't a 'strike' since it's obviously a 'defense' against aerial threat. It is call anti-aircraft. Air strike and ground strike usually mean the same thing.
Now if a city is sitting still in the sky and you got a platoon aiming straight up with reverse gravity bombs. Maybe that's a true ground strike??
Actually, I do find this troubling enough to seriously reconsider a flight booked for myself soon between Tunis and Doha
Personally I would have more qualms about Tunis airport than Syrian airspace at 35,000 feef
I flew with them in February from Jordan and we flew right over Syria and Iraq.
How about JFK-Doha? With the installation of B52s in Doha, will this route become a marquee target?
I just received a flight update from flight centre regarding DOH-BEY-DOH sector time changes. (travelling SYD-DOH-BEY RTN). I accepted immediately...one extra hour in Al Safwa lounge!
Wow, did someone here just gaslight for Russia the MH17? It was shot down by the Russians to scare people out of Ukraine airspace. That is it.
Anyway, none of the GCC countries fly through Israeli airspace, because they don't recognize Israeli sovereignty and thus can't pay navigation charges and accept control orders. The illegal blockade of Qatar means they can't use Saudi airspace, something that is a Violation of international law by Saudi Arabia and should result in their airlines being barred from all airspace, but alas. Since this is a safe and protected route, QR isn't really taking a risk.