US aviation watchdog bars all civilian flights over Iraq, Iran & Persian Gulf

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a “notice to airmen” barring all civilian flights over Iran and the Persian Gulf following a spate of Iranian missile strikes on US bases in Iraq.

Warning of the “potential for miscalculation or mis-identification” due to “heightened military activities” after the attacks on Tuesday night, the agency has prohibited flights over much of the region, which also includes the Gulf of Oman.

The Iranian strikes came in retaliation for an American targeted killing of top general and Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, for which Tehran vowed to take revenge.