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Austrian Airlines to start scheduled
flights to Kurdistan
7.11.2006 |
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Erbil, Kurdistan
Region (Iraq) ,-- Austrian Airlines announced on
Monday that it will start scheduled flights to Erbil
International Airport on 11 December.
Peter Katzlberger, the company's representative in
the Kurdistan Region, said, "Austrian Airlines is
proud to announce that it is the first western
regular scheduled carrier operating in the Kurdistan
Region in Iraq."
The airline said that it will operate two scheduled
flights a week between Vienna and Erbil, and tickets
can be booked at any Austrian Airlines office around
the world or in Erbil, or through an IATA
(International Air Transport Association) member
travel agent.
Falah Mustafa Bakir, the minister in charge of the
KRG's Office of Foreign Relations, said, "We are
pleased that the Austrian foreign ministry amended
its Iraq travel advice to show the true picture that
the Kurdistan Region is safer." |
Austrian Airlines |
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He added, "I hope that other scheduled carriers will
start to recognise that Kurdistan's air travel
market is growing and ripe for investment."
Charter carriers have been operating direct flights
to the Kurdistan Region since July 2005, with routes
including Frankfurt, Stockholm, Istanbul, Dubai and
Amman. Austrian Airlines is the first western
scheduled carrier.
The Kurdistan Regional Government is improving
aviation infrastructure by expanding the airport to
accommodate 1.5 million passengers and 35,000 tonnes
of freight a year. The new airport is due to be
completed in 2007.
Austrian, the first European carrier expecting to
launch scheduled flights to Iraq, said it saw the
capital of the country's Kurdistan region as a
secure destination.
"With a population of nearly one million, Erbil is
the fourth-largest and the fastest growing city in
Iraq," Austrian said in a statement.
Erbil would serve as an access point for Mosul and
the oil-rich Kurdish region around Kirkuk while the
United Nations also planned to establish a major
base in the city, Austrian said.
Austrian announced in January that it would start
regular flights to Erbil but cancelled its plans a
month later following a review of the circumstances.
Partly state-owned Austrian was the first European
airline operator to start services to Sarajevo and
Pristina in the wake of the war in former
Yugoslavia.
Contact details for Austrian Airlines and other
carriers and agents are available on the travel
information page.
Official website of Austrian website
Reuters | KRG
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