diff --git a/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/bwcompat/OldIndexBackwardsCompatibilityIT.java b/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/bwcompat/OldIndexBackwardsCompatibilityIT.java
index b5b1f955ae0..d23e11e2fb3 100644
--- a/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/bwcompat/OldIndexBackwardsCompatibilityIT.java
+++ b/core/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/bwcompat/OldIndexBackwardsCompatibilityIT.java
@@ -279,6 +279,7 @@ public class OldIndexBackwardsCompatibilityIT extends ESIntegTestCase {
         }
     }
 
+    @AwaitsFix(bugUrl = "https://github.com/elastic/elasticsearch/issues/16373")
     public void testOldIndexes() throws Exception {
         setupCluster();