What broke
Mostly parameter checks. Everything else needed routine changes.
How parity was proven
Both versions ran side by side for 2 weeks, with outputs compared in Great Expectations.
Run airflow version. If it starts with a 2, we should talk.
Open-source Apache Airflow 2 stopped getting security patches on April 22, 2026. We move small teams to Airflow 3 at a fixed price, on MWAA, Cloud Composer, Astro, or self-hosted. The assessment is a fixed fee, credited against the migration.
Where Airflow stands
| Version | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Airflow 2.x, open source | End of life | April 22, 2026 |
| Airflow 2.x on Astronomer (Astro) | Extended support | Until April 2027 |
| Airflow 3.x | Supported | Since April 2025 |
Sources: Apache Airflow version policy; Astronomer’s Airflow 2 end of life page.
It’s a migration, not a version bump.
- Core operators moved packages, so imports change across your DAGs.
- Scheduling and dates changed. Jobs can succeed and still land data on the wrong date.
- The metadata database needs a backup, a migration, and a rehearsal.
From assessment to cutover
-
Assessment
1 to 2 weeks, fixed fee
A DAG inventory and a migration plan, with cutover and rollback. Ends with a fixed quote. The fee is credited against the migration if you go ahead.
-
Migration
Fixed price
We convert DAGs and providers, prove parity, and run a rehearsed cutover.
Priced by platform size, not hours: DAGs, environments, and where it runs.
2026
Airflow 2 to 3 migration
A fintech running its data pipelines on Astronomer.
- DAGs
- 120
- Platform
- Astronomer
- Duration
- 2 months
Questions
Do you need access to production?
Read-only for the assessment. Write access to staging for the migration.
Can our team do part of the migration?
Yes. Your team converts some DAGs, and we review every change.
What happens to running DAGs during cutover?
After a parallel run, we pause in a quiet window, migrate the database, and resume on Airflow 3. Airflow 2 stays ready as a rollback.
Know the plan before you move.
A free 30 minute call tells you whether you need an assessment, and what it would cover.
You’ll talk to John García, a data engineer with over 15 years building production pipelines.
Rather write? Leave a note and we’ll reply by email.