Environment
Device: iPad Air (5th generation, M1)
OS Version: iPadOS 26.1
Device Orientation Lock: OFF
Stage Manager / Multitasking: Disabled
App Mode: Full screen (UIRequiresFullScreen = true)
Supported Orientations:
iPhone: Portrait + Landscape
iPad: Landscape only
Description
On iPadOS 26.x, when device orientation lock is OFF, iPad apps that support only landscape orientation can be displayed in portrait orientation, even though portrait is explicitly not supported for iPad.
This issue:
Occurs not only at app launch
Can also happen during runtime, such as:
Returning to the app from background
Unlocking the device
Rotating the device while the app is running
Switching focus (Control Center, Notification Center, multitasking gestures)
When orientation lock is ON, the system consistently respects the app’s supported interface orientations and the issue does not occur.
This behavior is a regression in iPadOS 26.x.
Expected Behavior
Regardless of device orientation lock state:
The system should never display an app in an unsupported orientation
supportedInterfaceOrientations must always be enforced
Physical device orientation should only be applied within supported orientations
Actual Behavior
With orientation lock OFF:
The system can force the app into portrait orientation
This happens even though portrait is not listed in UISupportedInterfaceOrientations~ipad
The app UI becomes incorrectly laid out or broken
With orientation lock ON:
Orientation behavior is correct and stable
This suggests iPadOS 26.x is allowing device orientation to override supportedInterfaceOrientations during runtime.
Info.plist Configuration
UIRequiresFullScreen
UISupportedInterfaceOrientations
UIInterfaceOrientationPortrait
UIInterfaceOrientationLandscapeLeft
UIInterfaceOrientationLandscapeRight
UISupportedInterfaceOrientations~ipad
UIInterfaceOrientationLandscapeLeft
UIInterfaceOrientationLandscapeRight
Topic:
UI Frameworks
SubTopic:
General