After dropping service to Iraq twenty years ago due to the Gulf War, Lufthansa has announced that it is “examining the possibility of launching several new services,” citing an increase in demand. No specific flight information has been released, though the carrier says it intends to launch service to Baghdad and Erbil from its Frankfurt and Munich hubs this summer.
The service would, of course, provide plenty of connecting opportunities thanks to Lufthansa’s vast network. The Star Alliance already has a presence in Iraq, however, with thrice-weekly service to Erbil from Vienna from Lufthansa-owned Austrian Airlines. Fellow Star carrier Turkish Airlines has daily service to Baghdad from Istanbul.
Lufthana’s announcement is also a competitive one. Starting next month Air Berlin will be launching very limited (twice a month) service to Munich from Erbil and Sulaymaniyah, providing connections to Hamburg, Berlin, and Düsseldorf. Blue Wings and Iraqi Airways had formed a partnership in 2009, with the former’s aircraft being used to serve Europe for the latter, though I’m not too optimistic on that partnership at the moment, considering that Blue Wings grounded its aircraft yesterday due to financial issues (for the second time in a year). Viking Airlines also has some European service to Iraq, and subsidiary Viking Hellas is launching service to Iraq from Athens soon.
The foreign carrier with the most most Iraqi destinations, however, remains to be oneworld carrier Royal Jordanian. The airline serves Baghdad, Basra, Erbil, and Sulaymaniyah. It appears, however, that service to Mosul has already been scrapped as it is now absent from the airline’s timetable.
Anyway, a major European carrier coming in is certainly a positive sign for Iraq in general, especially with Lufthansa saying they will serve Baghdad, considering other carriers have focused on serving the northern part of the country.
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