British Airways resuming direct flights to Iran after four-year halt
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - British Airways (BA) is restarting direct flights from London to Tehran after suspending them four years ago, when relations between the countries hit a low.
BA plans six flights a week to the Iranian capital.
The BBC reported that a BA Boeing 777 will depart from London to Tehran on Thursday, the first such flight since October 2012.
BA stopped flying the route after relations between Tehran and London broke down, a year after the British embassy in Tehran closed following an attack by a mob protesting economic sanctions against Iran.
Now, four years later, a nuclear deal has been reached between Iran and world powers and many sanctions against Tehran were lifted last January. The British embassy in Tehran was reopened last year and relations have been improving.
BA’s move follows Air France, which resumed its flight to Tehran in April after seven-years – but not without controversy. Female Air France flight attendants balked at having to wear a headscarf on flights landing in Tehran to conform with Iranian laws that requires that all women observe the hijab, or Islamic covering, at all times in public.
BA plans six flights a week to the Iranian capital.
The BBC reported that a BA Boeing 777 will depart from London to Tehran on Thursday, the first such flight since October 2012.
BA stopped flying the route after relations between Tehran and London broke down, a year after the British embassy in Tehran closed following an attack by a mob protesting economic sanctions against Iran.
Now, four years later, a nuclear deal has been reached between Iran and world powers and many sanctions against Tehran were lifted last January. The British embassy in Tehran was reopened last year and relations have been improving.
BA’s move follows Air France, which resumed its flight to Tehran in April after seven-years – but not without controversy. Female Air France flight attendants balked at having to wear a headscarf on flights landing in Tehran to conform with Iranian laws that requires that all women observe the hijab, or Islamic covering, at all times in public.