Austrian Airlines to fly to Iraqi Kurdistan again

After interrupted services last summer, Austrian Airlines will resume direct flights between Erbil, in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, and Vienna, Austria. The airline will offer the flight three times weekly.The Kurdistan region has reported an increase in international business and is relieved to see the airline resuming with the Vienna-Erbil connection. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has developed a number of programmes to try and bring its vision of economic improvement in the region to fruition. The KRG is confident that Austrian Airline’s move to bring Erbil back as a destination will encourage other airlines to do the same.

Apart from the Austrian carrier, other airlines to fly to the region include Royal Jordanian and Iraqi Airways which fly into Erbil and Sulaimaniyah. The original service was stopped in August 2007 after a Swedish jetliner came under attack while leaving Sulaimaniyah. Officials refuted that the Nordic Airways aircraft was the target of rocket fire; nonetheless, Sweden decided to stop all commercial flights into Iraq at that point. Nordic Airways is also set to resume flights into Sulaimaniyah this year.

Although the region is in the process of rebuilding physically, economically, and socially, the KRG is keen to keep the momentum going. It will continue to work on furthering its programmes to bring prosperity to the area, as well as implement new ones. The Austrian carrier was the first scheduled carrier of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to offer flights to Erbil.

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