The US Department of Transportation said on Friday that it had fined Air Canada $250,000 for operating flights in 2022 and 2023 in restricted Iraqi airspace.

The agency had jurisdiction because those flights carried the designated code of United Airlines. The violations occurred on several flights between the UAE and Toronto in airspace that the Federal Aviation Administration has banned from US operators.

The Federal Aviation Administration cited the “complex security environment” in Iraq that prevents flights. Air Canada must pay a $125,000 fine and owe another $125,000 if it violates the order again within a year. Air Canada will cease code sharing with United on the route in January 2023.

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“The incidents were brief, unplanned and unintentional, and were due to several factors, including air traffic control restrictions and a shift to a larger aircraft that needed more time to reach sufficient altitude,” Air Canada said. Safety was not compromised.” The company added that it had taken the necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.

The Ministry of Transport imposed a fine of $1.5 million on Emirates Airlines last June for operating flights bearing the code JBLU.O for JetBlue Airways over Iraqi airspace. This was the second time they were fined since 2020.
-Reporting by David Shepardson. Edited by Jonathan Oatis