12,000 Flights Canceled During War and Ceasefire

TEHRAN (Iran News) In an interview with ILNA, Hamidreza Sanaei, Deputy for Aviation and International Affairs at the Civil Aviation Organization, provided an update on the current status of international flights at Imam Khomeini International Airport. He stated:

“Today, there will be 18 inbound flights to Imam Khomeini Airport, and an equal number of outbound flights will operate from this airport.”

Addressing concerns over the pricing of international flight tickets—which are not subject to regulated price ranges—Sanaei said:

“Yesterday, a meeting was held with airline executives to discuss price controls. The airlines themselves emphasized that even for international flights not covered by mandatory pricing, there should not be significant price increases.”

However, he pointed out that foreign carriers operating flights to Iran set their ticket prices purely based on supply and demand, and are not subject to any domestic pricing regulations.

Sanaei continued: “Despite the heavy financial losses during this period, domestic airlines have insisted that there will be no abnormal price hikes for international flight tickets.”

As a key measure to help keep ticket prices reasonable, Sanaei said the organization has been actively issuing flight permits to multiple foreign and domestic airlines:

“From the very first day of resuming international flights, we negotiated with an Arab-Iranian carrier to quickly return to Iranian routes, and we have already granted permission for 9 daily flights by this airline. By increasing the number of authorized flights, we aim to break price surges.”

He noted that the number of international routes is gradually increasing: “Currently, flights to Dubai and Turkey are operational, and flights to China and Oman will resume soon. Over time, all international routes will reopen, and we will issue permits for domestic airlines to operate on these routes without restrictions.”

Regarding the financial impact on airlines from canceled flights, Sanaei said: “The damages have been reported. During the period of war and ceasefire, about 12,000 flights were canceled. A precise calculation of financial losses is underway, and an initial report has been submitted to the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development.”

He added that assistance to airlines facing war-related losses is being pursued through decisions by the Cabinet: “The only legal basis we currently have is Article 63 of the Law on Government Revenue Collection, which states that airport charges can be waived during wartime. Beyond that, there are generally no permanent support provisions for such circumstances.”