The Iraqi Ministry of Transport announced today the landing of an aircraft from Greek company "Aegean Airlines" at Baghdad International Airport, making it the first commercial European aircraft to land there in 35 years. The ministry stated in a statement that this flight is "a pivotal moment marking a new phase of recovery and openness in the Iraqi aviation sector". The ministry added: "The flight was operated by Aegean, Greece's national carrier, to be the first European flight to land in the capital Baghdad for more than three decades, marking Iraq's return to the European aviation map". European airlines had stopped operating direct flights to Baghdad since the early 90s. According to the Ministry of Transport, two flights per week will be operated on the Baghdad-Athens-Baghdad route, with the possibility of increasing the number of flights according to demand levels. The Greek company had begun operating flights to Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdistan region, several months ago.
