First European plane lands in Iraq in 35 years

A flight of Greece's Aegean Airlines at Athens airport (file photo)

The first European plane to land at Baghdad International Airport in more than three decades has landed at the Iraqi capital, Baghdad. The flight, operated by Greece's Aegean Airlines, landed at Baghdad International Airport on Tuesday (December 16). European airlines had previously suspended flights to the Middle Eastern country due to security concerns.

Al Arabiya reported that a passenger plane from a European airline had landed at Baghdad International Airport for the first time in 35 years. A flight operated by Greece's Aegean Airlines arrived there on Tuesday, the Iraqi Ministry of Transport said.

The arrival of the flight signals Iraq's return to the European aviation map and marks the beginning of a new chapter in the country's aviation recovery, the ministry said in a statement.

European airlines have been halting direct flights to Baghdad International Airport since the early 1990s for security reasons. The situation became more complicated when then-Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein invaded neighboring Kuwait. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein in a US-led invasion in 2003, Iraq has been plunged into civil war, sectarian violence and the rise of armed extremist groups.

However, after a long period of instability, Iraq has recently begun to return to relative stability. The government is now trying to attract foreign investment to boost the country's economy. The Iraqi Ministry of Transport said that two flights will be operated per week on the Baghdad-Athens-Baghdad route. There is also the possibility of increasing the number of flights in the future if passenger demand increases.

Earlier this year, the Greek airline launched flights to Erbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. The region is generally seen as a relatively stable area in a volatile Iraq.