Complicating matters further is the fact that different aviation authorities approach problem situations differently. While the FAA had previously prohibited U.S. carriers from flying over parts of Ukraine back in April, European authorities only did so after Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down.

And it’s likely that airlines will continue to fly over the world’s hot spots as they try to balance flight times, fuel burn, weather and a host of other variables.

“If there’s no choice but to fly over dangerous weather vs. a possible geopolitical hotspot they [face] a tough choice,” said George Hobica, president of AirfareWatchdog. “It might only be a matter of 5, 10 or 15 minutes longer flight to avoid a country where there might be potential bad actors with access to surface to air missiles. But if a flight is already late, and there are connecting passengers who might miss their flights, I wonder if an airline might take a chance.