The US Federal Aviation Administration has issued a notice banning flights over parts of Iran amid escalating political tensions after the shooting down of a $US130m American drone.

The Notice to Airmen (NOTAM)  prohibits US flights in the overwater area of the Tehran Flight Information region above the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman due to heightened military activity and increased political tensions.

The FAA warned this represented an inadvertent risk to US civil aviation operations and the “potential for miscalculation or misidentification”.

“The risk to US civil aviation is demonstrated by the Iranian surface-to-air missile shoot-down of a US unmanned aircraft system on 19 June 2019 while it was operating in the vicinity of civil air routes above the Gulf of Oman,” it said.

Although the prohibition applies to US aircraft, it will be heeded carriers from other nations.

It comes as the world approaches the fifth anniversary of the 2014 destruction of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 by a Russian-made missile over Ukraine with the loss of 298 lives

Read: Four charged with murder over the downing of MH17

Opsgroup, which tracks aviation industry risks, said some airlines had already reported suspending operations in Iranian airspace.

“This NOTAM ensures that US operators cannot operate in the area,” it said.

“Although the official applicability is to US aircraft only, since MH17 all countries rely on advice from the US, the UK, France and Germany to highlight airspace risk.”

Iran has been blamed for shooting down the US Navy Northrop Grumman RQ-4A Block 10 Global Hawk and the FAA said flight tracking applications indicated the nearest civil aircraft was just 45 nautical miles away.

Even before the order was issued, United Airlines had suspended flights from Newark Airport and Mumbai after conducting a safety review.

Australian carrier Qantas also said Friday it had adjusted its flight paths over the Middle East to avoid the  Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman until further notice.

The airline said the changes would mean a slight change tot he routing of QF1/2 and QF9/10 between Australia and London but the impact on flying time would be negligible.

The NOTAM comes as US media are reporting that US President Donald Trump approved military strikes against Iran but pulled back from launching them.

The New York Times said Trump had initially approved attacks on a handful of Iranian targets such as radar and missile batteries.

The paper quoted a senior administration official as saying the operation was underway and its early stages when it was called off.

Qantas is cutting the additional fees it charges frequent flyers using points, adding more than a million extra rewards seats a year and making it more expensive to upgrade in the biggest changes to its loyalty scheme in 32 years.

The additional seats on Qantas and new partner airlines will be the equivalent 2000 A380s and Qantas says they will be available at the times of highest demand and on popular routes.

New partner airlines where Qantas frequent flyers can “earn and burn” points include Air New Zealand, China Airlines, Bangkok Airways, Air France and KLM.

The $A25m annual investment will see carrier charges – the additional costs associated with booking flights —cut by up to 50 percent on international journeys, saving $A200 per journey on average.

People redeeming seats in economy class will need up to 10 percent fewer points but the number of points people require to redeem seats in premium cabins will rise by up to 15 percent.

It will also cost 9 percent more in terms of points to upgrade.

READ: Qantas order for 36 super efficient XLRs will open new routes.

The increase in premium points is the first in 15 years and Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said it reflected the improvement in the premium experience.

For an economy class passenger redeeming a return trip between Melbourne and Los Angeles, the changes will see the number of points needed fall from 90,000 to 83,800 and the charges drop by  $A120 to $A393.

A premium economy return trip redemption will rise 18,600 points to 162,800 but passengers will save $A190 on charges, which fall to $A603.

Business class redemptions rise 24,800 points to 216,800 points but charges fall  $240 to $703.

First class passengers see the biggest rise of 37,600 points, bringing the total to 325,000 points, but they see the same fall in charges as their business class counterparts.

“The Qantas Frequent Flyer program has always been about rewarding customers for their loyalty. These changes are about making it easier for members to access those rewards and help to keep them highly engaged, which in turn is good news for our business as a whole,’’ Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said.

“We know the majority of our members want to use their points to take a dream trip overseas, so we are adding more reward seats including First, Business and Premium Economy, to places like London, Los Angeles, Tokyo and Singapore as well as slashing carrier charges.

“While the points required for business class seats on international and domestic flights will increase slightly, it is the first increase in 15 years and the product has improved a lot in that time.”

Other changes include a lifetime Platinum award for members accruing 75,000 status credits and the creation of a new tiered Points Club program, a sort of loyalty program within a loyalty program for high-buyers.

This is designed to better reward members who earn most of their points through on-the-ground transactions such as credit cards.

The initiative will include two tiers with entry based on a member passing an annual points-earned criteria.

Qantas says the club will unlock, for the first time, flight and travel benefits for non-flying members including lounge access and bonus status credits.

The entry-level Points Club tier will be accessed through earning 150,000 points on the ground while the exclusive ‘Points Club Plus’ tier will have a higher entry level.

“While frequent travellers have always been at the centre of what we do, the growth of our program and its hundreds of partners has provided opportunities for many members to now earn most of their points on the ground,’’ Qantas Loyalty chief executive Olivia Wirth said.

“Our members are all unique in how they choose to earn and use their Qantas Points. The combination of the new Points Club, the introduction of our most elite tier in Lifetime Platinum, and the increase in seats across our network means the revamped program should offer something for everyone.”

Not changing in the revamp are tier eligibility criteria and the status credits required, existing tier benefits and points earn rates on Qantas and partner airlines.

Three Russians and a Ukrainian are to be charged with causing the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014 and with the murder of its 298 passengers and crew.

Dutch prosecutors will lodge the charges on the basis of extensive evidence collected by The MH17 Joint Investigation Team, which includes representatives from  Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, Ukraine and the Netherlands.

They are issuing international arrest warrants and placing the four on national and international wanted lists.

MH17 was downed by a Russian-made missile on July 17, 2014  as it crossed Ukrainian airspace while traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.

The tragedy was doubling shocking because it occurred so soon after the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. Many of the MH17 victims were Dutch but there were also 38 Australians.

The three Russians were named as Igor Vsevolodovich Girkin (48), Sergey Nikolayevich Dubinskiy  (56) and Oleg Yuldashevich Pulatov (52). The Ukranian is Leonid Volodymyrovych Kharchenko (47).

The Dutch Public Prosecution Service alleges the four men cooperated to obtain and deploy the BUK TELAR that launched the missile at MH17 at the firing location with the aim of shooting down an aircraft.

READ: Social media helps investigators identify Russian army unit.

Under Dutch law, that means they can be held jointly accountable for downing flight MH17 even if that was not their intention.

Girkin was the most senior of the group and was a  former colonel of the FSB, the Russian Federal Security Service.

On July 17,  2014, Girkin was Minister of Defence and commander of the army of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic — the area where MH17 was shot down.

The prosecutors allege that as the highest military officer, he maintained contact with the Russian Federation.

Sergey Dubinskiy is a former military officer of the GRU, the Russian military intelligence service.

Dubinskiy was one of Girkin’s deputies in 2014 and also head of the intelligence service of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. He is also alleged to have maintained regular contact with officials in Russia.

Oleg Pulatovis a former military officer of the Russian Spetznaz-GRU, the special units of the Russian military intelligence service.

In 2014, Pulatov was deputy head of the intelligence service of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and one of the deputies of Dubinskiy.

Leonid Kharchenko is the only Ukrainian suspect and has no military background.

Prosecutors say he received his orders directly from Dubinskiy and in July 2014 commanded a combat unit in the Donetsk region.

“At that time, there was an armed conflict in that area between pro-Russian fighters and the Ukrainian armed forces,’’ they said.

The men will be prosecuted for causing the crash of the Boeing 777 and the death of all those under one section of Dutch law and their murder under another.

The trial will start on March 9, 2020, before the District Court of The Hague at the Schiphol Judicial Complex.

But because neither Russia nor Ukraine allows the extradition of nationals, and given Russia’s denial it was involved in the atrocity, it is unlikely any of four men will face the court.

The charges are the result of a long-running investigation that saw the JIT announce in 2016 MH17 was shot down by a missile from the 9M38 series, which was launched by a BUK TELAR system.

It said the system was transported from the Russian Federation to an agricultural field near the town of Pervomaiskyi in Eastern Ukraine, from where the missile was launched.

After firing, it returned to the Russian Federation with one missile missing.

Last year, The JIT concluded the BUK TELAR used to shoot down MH17 came from the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade, a unit of the Russian armed forces from Kursk in the Russian Federation.

The charges do not mean an end to the investigation and the JIT has yet to publicly identify who actually launched the missile.

Officials at a press conference on Wednesday disclosed evidence of phone taps, social media and witness statements but said they had more that would be presented to the court.

They are still seeking witnesses with information on other people who played a role in the downing of flight MH17, including members of the 53rd Brigade.

“The investigation is ongoing and will continue to focus on the crew of the BUK TELAR and on persons who were an important link in the decision-making in the Russian Federation on military support to Eastern Ukraine in 2014,’’ they said.

The Qantas Group has ordered up to 36 of the newly launched and long-legged A321XLRs,  opening up routes such as Cairns-Tokyo and Melbourne-Singapore to fuel-efficient single-aisle flights.

The long-range planes will be delivered from fiscal 2024 and are part of an update to its existing order for 99 A320neo family aircraft.

The update adds 10 A321XLRs to boosts the total order to 109 and converts 26 existing A321neo orders to the extra-long-range planes.

The order includes significant flexibility for the Qantas Group to make adjustments to delivery schedules to match market conditions.

It means the Australian carrier now has 28 Airbus A321LRs, 36 A321XLRs and 45 A320neos on order with deliveries beginning with 18 A321LRs destined for Jetstar.

The A321XLR has a range of around 8700kms, allowing to fly 15 percent further than the A321LR and be deployed on routes currently flown by widebody aircraft.

It is able to fly such long distances due to additional fuel tanks in the belly of the aircraft plus, improved aerodynamics and a 25 percent increase to maximum take-off weight compared with the Group’s existing A320s.

READ: Airbus launches super fuel efficient A321XLR

The classic aircraft are currently used across Jetstar and in resources markets with QantasLink.

The ALR’s efficiency and size compared to big widebody jet will allow it to open up new routes for the flying kangaroo or improve the economics on existing routes.

Depending on cabin configurations, which Qantas did not reveal, it can carry up to 244 passengers and offers a 30 percent lower fuel burn per seat compared with previous generation competitor aircraft.

Qantas says the fuel-efficient aircraft will improve fleet flexibility and network options but could potentially be used “by different airlines in the Qantas Group”.

“We already know the A320 is a great aircraft and this new variant can fly further and more efficiently than any other single-aisle jet on the market,’’ Qantas Group chief executive Alan Joyce said.

“It can fly routes like Cairns-Tokyo or Melbourne-Singapore, which existing narrow-bodies can’t, and that changes the economics of lots of potential routes into Asia to make them not just physically possible but financially attractive.

“We’ll take a decision closer to the time about which parts of the group will use these aircraft, but there is plenty of potential across Qantas and Jetstar.

“We’ll also take a view on whether they are used to replace older aircraft or whether they are used for growth, which will depend on what’s happening in the market.

“All fleet decisions we make are ultimately guided by our financial framework, which balances our capital expenditure and need to invest for the future with our debt levels and ongoing returns to shareholders.”

The Jetstar A321LRs will arrive between Mid-2020 and mid-2022 and will operate a mix of domestic and international routes.

If all goes well, this will allow the A321XLRs to slot in from the 2024 financial year.