A surprise five-hour Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) from Tehran at 22:15 GMT on 15 January shut large swathes of Iranian airspace to civilian traffic. Dubai-based flydubai and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad diverted multiple flights, while Emirates added fuel stops in Rome and Athens. Although Iran reopened the corridors before dawn, Lufthansa and Air India said they would avoid Iranian and Iraqi overflights “until further notice.” (visahq.com)
The diversions add up to 90 minutes of flight time on Europe-bound sectors, increasing fuel burn and crew-duty costs and creating ripple delays at DXB and AUH. Aviation-risk consultancy Safe Airspace warned that rising missile- and drone-activity heightens mis-identification risks, referencing the 2020 downing of UIA Flight PS752.
![Iranian Airspace Closure Forces UAE Carriers to Reroute, Exposing New Duty-of-Care Risks]()
For corporate travel managers, the incident underscores the need for dynamic routing tools and real-time security intelligence. Employees unexpectedly routed through Dubai or Abu Dhabi for technical stops may require transit or full entry visas at short notice. Visa vendors report a spike in same-day UAE transit-visa requests since the NOTAM.
To streamline these urgent requirements, VisaHQ offers an online platform where individual travelers and corporate mobility teams can secure UAE transit or entry visas in a matter of hours, complete with live status tracking and dedicated support. Explore the options at https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/.
Insurance firms are reviewing war-risk premiums, and some corporates have re-imposed a “two-aircraft” rule—banning senior executives from flying on the same flight across the Gulf. Mobility teams should verify that emergency visa-issuance channels and travel-risk dashboards are fully up to date.
The diversions add up to 90 minutes of flight time on Europe-bound sectors, increasing fuel burn and crew-duty costs and creating ripple delays at DXB and AUH. Aviation-risk consultancy Safe Airspace warned that rising missile- and drone-activity heightens mis-identification risks, referencing the 2020 downing of UIA Flight PS752.
For corporate travel managers, the incident underscores the need for dynamic routing tools and real-time security intelligence. Employees unexpectedly routed through Dubai or Abu Dhabi for technical stops may require transit or full entry visas at short notice. Visa vendors report a spike in same-day UAE transit-visa requests since the NOTAM.
To streamline these urgent requirements, VisaHQ offers an online platform where individual travelers and corporate mobility teams can secure UAE transit or entry visas in a matter of hours, complete with live status tracking and dedicated support. Explore the options at https://www.visahq.com/united-arab-emirates/.
Insurance firms are reviewing war-risk premiums, and some corporates have re-imposed a “two-aircraft” rule—banning senior executives from flying on the same flight across the Gulf. Mobility teams should verify that emergency visa-issuance channels and travel-risk dashboards are fully up to date.
