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Kristin Huang

Beijing has not ordered Chinese carriers to make any flight changes to Iran but is monitoring conditions in the country closely after the crash of a Boeing 737-800 passenger jet in Tehran, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
The announcement came after China Southern Airlines, the only mainland-based airline that operates flights to Iran, cancelled a departure from Urumqi in western Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to Tehran on Wednesday.
“The flight was cancelled due to security concerns,” an airline official said on Thursday, adding that passengers could exchange tickets at no extra charge.
“Till now, we have not yet received any new notice saying future flights to Iran would be cancelled.”


Flight 752, operated by Ukraine International Airlines, left Tehran airport for the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, on Wednesday morning, with 167 passengers and nine crew.
It crashed between the cities of Parand and Shahriar in Tehran province, killing everyone on board, including 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 10 Swedes and three Britons. Authorities said technical problems were to blame.
Ukrainian Boeing 737 crashes in Iran, killing all 176 on board
The crash happened hours after Iranian forces launched 16 ballistic missiles into Iraq, targeting an airbase with US personnel and a second facility in response to an American air strike in Iraq last week that killed Major General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force.
Media reported that Ukraine’s embassy in Tehran issued a statement that ruled out terrorist involvement in the plane crash but later withdrew it without explanation, prompting questions about whether other possible causes, including terrorism, were being explored.
However, Iranian armed forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi rejected the speculation and said that a missile did not bring the plane down.

As tensions and uncertainty increased across the Middle East, airlines diverted flights from Iranian airspace. Air France and Dutch carrier KLM both said on Wednesday that they had suspended all flights over Iranian and Iraqi airspace indefinitely.
Asian operators that chose to avoid Iranian airspace included Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and Singaporean low-cost carrier Scoot.
Cathay Pacific said it had not flown over Iran and Iraq for “over a year”. Malaysia’s AirAsia said it did not fly over the two countries, while Korean Airlines said its flights did not cross Iran.
Australian carrier Qantas said it was altering its London-to-Perth, Australia, route to avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace until further notice. The longer route meant that Qantas would have to carry fewer passengers and more fuel on a flight that took 40 to 50 minutes longer than usual.
Can China be the voice of reason as US, Iran trade missile attacks?
Taiwanese carriers China Airlines and EVA Air said they diverted flights to Europe on Wednesday to skirt Iraqi and Iranian airspace. They said route decisions would depend on developments.
In July 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew. The incident happened during a conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine, where ties between Kiev and Moscow had frayed.
Additional reporting by Associated Press

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Rescuers search the wreckage of Ukraine-bound Flight 752 after it crashed outside Tehran. Photo: Bloomberg

Women hold pictures of Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force, who was killed in an air strike at Baghdad airport, during a funeral procession and burial at his hometown in Kerman, Iran January 7, 2020. Mehdi Bolourian/Fars News Agency/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY

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A satellite image reportedly shows damage to the Al-Asad airbase in Iraq after it was hit by missiles from Iran. Image: Planet Labs via AFP

What appears to be new damage at Al Asad air base in Iraq is seen in a satellite picture taken January 8, 2020. Planet/Handout via REUTERS. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. THIS IMAGE WAS PROCESSED BY REUTERS TO ENHANCE QUALITY, AN UNPROCESSED VERSION HAS BEEN PROVIDED SEPARATELY.

President Donald J. Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence, meets with senior White House advisors Tuesday evening, Jan. 7, 2020, in the Situation Room of the White House, on a further meeting about the Islamic Republic of Iran missile attacks on U.S. military facilities in Iraq. Photo: White House

TOPSHOT - An image grab from footage obtained from the state-run Iran Press news agency on January 8, 2020 allegedly shows rockets launched from the Islamic republic against the US military base in Ein-al Asad in Iraq the prevous night. - Iran fired a volley of missiles late on January 7, 2020 at Iraqi bases housing US and foreign troops in Iraq, the Islamic republic's first act in its promised revenge for the US killing of a top Iranian general. Launched for the first time by government forces inside Iran instead of by proxy, the attack marked a new turn in the intensifying confrontation between Washington and Tehran and sent world oil prices soaring. (Photo by - / IRAN PRESS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT - AFP PHOTO / HO / IRAN PRESS NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS FROM ALTERNATIVE SOURCES, AFP IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DIGITAL ALTERATIONS TO THE PICTURE'S EDITORIAL CONTENT, DATE AND LOCATION WHICH CANNOT BE INDEP

This January 8, 2020, satellite image released by Planet Labs Inc., and annotated analysis by Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (MIIS), reportedly shows damage to the Ain al-Asad US airbase in western Iraq, after being hit by rockets from Iran. - Iran fired a volley of missiles on January 8 at Iraqi bases housing US and other foreign troops, the Islamic republic's first act in its promised revenge for the US killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani. (Photo by HO / Planet Labs Inc., MIIS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / Planet Labs Inc. / MIIS" - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS

Iraqi Kurds inspect a crater caused by a reportedly Iranian missile initially fired at Iraqi bases housing US and other US-led coalition troops, in the Iraqi Kurdish town of Bardarash in the Dohuk governorate on January 8, 2020. - The missiles targeted the sprawling Ain al-Asad airbase in western Iraq and a base in Arbil, both housing American and other foreign troops deployed as part of a US-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group. (Photo by - / AFP)

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US President Donald Trump speaks about the situation with Iran in the White House on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

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China

Diplomacy


Beijing has not redirected planes away from Iranian and Iraqi airspace, but China Southern Airlines cancelled flight to Tehran on Wednesday on security grounds



Beijing has not redirected planes away from Iranian and Iraqi airspace, but China Southern Airlines cancelled flight to Tehran on Wednesday on security grounds.


‘China keeping eye on Iran flights’ but no changes for Chinese air carriers

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Beijing has not redirected planes away from Iranian and Iraqi airspace, but China Southern Airlines cancelled flight to Tehran on Wednesday on security grounds

Beijing has not redirected planes away from Iranian and Iraqi airspace, but China Southern Airlines cancelled flight to Tehran on Wednesday on security grounds