B737 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Instrument
Situational Awareness; Communication Breakdown
Airspace Violation All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance; Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification; Flight Crew Took Evasive Action; Flight Crew Diverted; Flight Crew Exited Penetrated Airspace
Weather; Human Factors
We were on descent into ZZZ when Dispatch ACARS messaged us an alternate airport with no other explanation. This got us questioning why. As we got closer to the airport; we could see that the weather returns showed a massive thunderstorm approaching ZZZ. We were trying to coordinate a route around the weather as well as manage our fuel and expectations of route delays if we were to go to alternate. As we were getting vectored; it became clear that we were not going to get to the airport with enough fuel to be able to make it to alternate if needed. There was no alternate on the Release to begin the flight and not a lot of extra fuel. After we asked to divert to alternate; ATC kept giving us vectors either directly into the weather or away from our alternate. ATC kept issuing us vectors directly into very strong weather. When we told ATC that we could not accept those vectors; they said we have to because of a Warning Area. We told them we had to go into the Warning Area as we had no choice at that point due to fuel.As we were trying to get around weather; we made the decision to land at ZZZ1 as that was the closest airport that had good enough weather to get into. We did not think that we would ever make it to our alternate as that was back through the weather and was also experiencing thunderstorms.
Extensive thunderstorms over the [area] prevented us from accepting vectors to avoid Warning Area. I informed ATC I was using my emergency authority to continue into the Warning Area to avoid extreme weather.
737 flight crew reported entering restricted airspace due to severe weather deviation.