Iraqi Airways launches first direct flight to Berlin since 2015

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi Airways on Friday announced the departure of its first direct flight from Baghdad to Berlin after the European ban on the airliner was lifted.

Previously on Oct. 27, Iraq’s transportation ministry announced that direct flights between Baghdad International Airport and several airports in Germany and Denmark would resume on Nov. 10.

Iraqi Airways had been banned from flying into both EU and UK territory since Dec. 2015, when it was added to the Union’s blacklist due to “unaddressed safety concerns,” although it is believed that certain European countries had lifted or had not enforced the ban. 

The lack of flight transportation from Baghdad to Europe has often led to a surplus of Iraqis booking their flights with Erbil’s airport, leading to traffic and congestion in the airport, yet benefitting Erbil with financial profitability.

In Nov. 2016, the airliner entered into a deal with German airliner Lufthansa in order to make adjustments that would meet European air safety criteria, in addition to modernizing the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA).

The airliner has been plagued with controversy, as it has experienced several air safety incidents, contributing to its poor reputation.

In August, reports circulated that a live bear had escaped out of a crate in the undercarriage of the airliner’s aircraft heading from Baghdad to Dubai, with the bear later being sedated.

Furthermore, in Oct. 2020, an Iraqi Airways pilot reportedly invited a female passenger into the cockpit while operating the aircraft. He was later suspended by the ICAA.

In July 2019, the lead pilot of a Tunisia-Baghdad flight reportedly told passengers that he needed to pay Tunis-Carthage Airport $3,000 for a fuel refill. Some passengers later alleged the pilot had asked them to “collect the [required] amount of money” to pay fuel dues at the airport.

After departing from an Iranian airport in July 2018, two Iraqi Airways pilots reportedly had an argument mid-flight and physically fought at 37,000 feet, both of whom were later fired by the country's transportation ministry.