The North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch on November 29 again reminded the aviation community of the remote but present danger of such unnannounced missile tests, as well as conflicts within shared airspace between other vehicles such as drones. North Korea has launched around 23 missiles this year. Pilots from a Cathay Pacific flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong witnessed the re-entry of the latest missile as it “blew-up and fell apart,” marking the first time flight crews had established definitive visual contact with one of the projectiles. Two Korean Air flights also saw the missile in flight.

Singapore Airlines altered its transpacific route into North Asia in late July, and several others followed suit after the missiles began to cross Flight Information Regions into Japan’s maritime Economic Exclusion Zone.

North Korea does not issue Notices to Airmen (Notams) and has ignored advisories from ICAO to do so. The situation adds to the threat posed by conflict zones, drones, and balloons.

“Regulators may advise the avoidance of certain airspace or altitude but it is the individual airlines who have to manage their complex risk assessments, and you end up with airlines taking different routes,” said Association of Asia Pacific Airlines director general Andrew Herdman. AAPA conducts risk-assessment workshops covering conflicted airspace.

Of course, the number of airspace users has also increased in recent years, as various countries launch more satellites and drones operate in both controlled and uncontrolled airspace. Even the threat posed by lighter-than-air vehicles stands to increase as the likes of Google prepare to launch balloons capable of providing LTE service to disaster areas such as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

“Drones used to be a national regulation concern but now ICAO is stepping in to study protocols and registers, et cetera,” said Herdmann. “As with satellite and missile launches, it would involve the space agencies and military, and it is how we manage these interactions with them.”