Transport Canada monitors and assesses the threats to flight routes used by passenger aircraft.
If a country does not properly manage risks to commercial aviation in its airspace, Transport Canada can issue a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) or an Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC) to notify the aviation community about the risks. These notifications are used by Canadian air operators to plan flights and make decisions.
- A NOTAM is used when the information is temporary or time sensitive.
- If the information is valid for more than 90 days, the NOTAM will be added to an AIC. Otherwise, the NOTAM will expire.
There are 3 types of notices:
- Level 1 (Information) – Information about the risks of flying in, or through, a certain country
- Level 2 (Recommendation) – Advice to take certain action or not enter a certain country
- Level 3 (Ban) – Flights cannot enter a certain country
See below for the inventory of Transport Canada alerts for Canadian airlines flying near or over foreign conflict zones.
On this page
- Afghanistan
- Armenia/Azerbaijan
- Belarus
- Ethiopia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Libya
- Moldova
- North Korea
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia
- Syria
- Ukraine/Western Russia
- Yemen
Afghanistan – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not to fly over Afghanistan, except for transiting overflights on certain air routes
NOTAM text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of Afghanistan (Kabul FIR (OAKX)), due to the potential risk from extremist and militant activity and limited risk mitigation capabilities in Afghanistan.
Exempted from this advisory are airways P500 & G500 for transiting overflights at or above FL320.
Issued: 28 July 2021, revised 20 August and 16 September 2021
Armenia/Azerbaijan – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised to take potential risk into account when flying over Armenia and Azerbaijan
NOTAM text: Canadian air operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised to take all potential risk into account in risk assessment and flight routing decisions when operating in the airspace of Armenia (Yerevan Zvartnots FIR (UDDD)) and Azerbaijan (Baku FIR (UBBA)), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military aviation along the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Issued: 15 Sep 2022
Belarus – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are prohibited from flying over Belarus
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are prohibited from entering Belarus (Minsk (UMMV) FIR), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in Ukraine and eastern Europe.
Issued: 19 Jan 2022, revised 12 Feb, 24 Feb, 25 Feb and 25 Mar 2022
Ethiopia – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised to take potential risk into account when flying below 29,000 over Ethiopia
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised to take all potential risk into account in risk assessment and flight routing decisions when operating at a flight level equal to or below FL290 in the airspace of Ethiopia (Addis Ababa FIR (HAAA)), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military aviation in Ethiopia.
Issued: 22 Nov 2021
Iran – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not to fly over Iran
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of Iran (Tehran FIR (OIIX)), due to the potential risk from military activity and anti-aviation weaponry in Iran.
Issued: 10 Jan 2020
Iraq – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised to fly at least 32,000 feet above sea level when flying over Iraq
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised to maintain a flight level equal to or above FL320 in the airspace of Iraq (Baghdad FIR (ORBB)), due to the potential risk from military activity and anti-aviation weaponry in Iraq.
Issued: 18 Nov 2021
Libya – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not to fly over Libya
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of Libya (Tripoli FIR (HLLL)), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations created by the current level of instability in Libya.
Issued: 18 Feb 2020
Moldova – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are prohibited from flying over Moldovan airspace
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are prohibited from entering Moldova (Chisinau (LUUU) FIR), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in Ukraine and eastern Europe.
Issued: 19 Jan 2022, revised 12 Feb, 24 Feb, 25 Feb and 25 Mar 2022
North Korea – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not overfly North Korea.
NOTAM text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of North Korea (FIR Pyongyang (ZKKP)), due to the potential risk to aviation from ballistic missile launches without prior notice.
Issued: 19 Oct 2022
Saudi Arabia – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised to take potential risk into account when flying over Saudi Arabia, and not to fly over certain areas of the country
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised to take all potential risk information into account in risk assessment and flight routing decisions in Saudi airspace (Jeddah FIR (OEJD)), and not to enter the southwest area of OEJD FIR, in which ESCAT (Emergency Security Control of Air Traffic) rules may be activated by NOTAM from the Saudi authorities, due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in Saudi Arabia.
Issued: 11 Mar 2021
Somalia – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised to fly at least 26,000 feet above sea level when flying over Somalia
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised to maintain a flight level equal to or above FL260 within Somali airspace (Mogadishu FIR (HCSM)), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in Somalia.
Issued: 9 Feb 2021
Syria – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not to fly over Syria, and to take risk into account when flying over neighboring countries
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of Syria (Damascus FIR (OSTT)), and to take all potential risk information into account in risk assessment and flight routing decisions when operating in the airspace within 200 NM of the Damascus FIR (OSTT), due to the potential risk from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in or around Syria.
Issued: 9 Feb 2020
Ukraine/Western Russia – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are prohibited from operating in Ukrainian airspace, as well as within parts of western Russian airspace
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are prohibited from entering Ukrainian airspace, and from operating within 200NM of the boundaries of the Dnipropetrovsk (UKDV) and Kyiv (UKBV) FIRs in the Moscow FIR (UUWV), due to the potential risk associated with anti-aviation weaponry and military operations in Ukraine and eastern Europe.
Issued: 19 Jan 2022, revised 12 Feb, 24 Feb, 25 Feb and 25 Mar 2022
Yemen – Aeronautical Information Circular 3/23 – Canadian airlines are advised not to fly over certain areas of Yemen
AIC text: Canadian Air Operators and owners of aircraft registered in Canada are advised not to enter the airspace of Yemen (Sana’a FIR (OYSC)) northwest of the line created by the waypoints PAKER-ORBAT-NORMA on jet route UT702, due to potential risks from anti-aviation weaponry and military operations.
Issued: 9 Feb 2021