Domestic airlines operate three empty flights from Tehran to Istanbul to return Iranians to their home country.
According to Maqsoud Asadi-Samani, secretary of the Association of Iranian Airlines, airliners are not allowed to carry Iranians to Istanbul, but they can return them back home.
“Turkish citizens who hold diplomatic mission documents are also allowed to travel to Iran,” he was quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
“The scheduled date [Oct. 2] announced by Turkey for resumption of flights between Tehran and Istanbul is not reliable.”
Asadi-Samani said Iranian airlines operate flights to 20 airports around the world; Iranian passengers are allowed to fly back to the country in accordance with safety and health guidelines related to Covid-19.
Turkey recently put off resumption of Iran flights, for a second time, this time to Oct. 2, according to Touraj Dehqani Zanganeh, the head of Iran Civil Aviation Organization.
“We are trying to resume these flights with the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other related offices,” he was quoted as saying by Azad News Agency.
Previously, Turkish Airlines had announced it would operate flights to five Iranian cities as of Sept. 1 for passengers holding Turkish citizenship or permanent residency on Sept. 1.
On July 19, Turkey cancelled flight permits to and from Iran due the coronavirus pandemic.
“As we speak, passengers who wish to travel from Iran to Turkey have to take Qatar Airways flights to Doha and then take another plane to their final destination. That will add to extra cost and time. Qatar Airways does not operate direct flights between Iran and Turkey,” ILNA quoted Reza Jafarzadeh, the spokesperson of Civil Aviation Organization of Iran, as saying recently.
Earlier, Jafarzadeh said Turkey has not reopened its borders for Iranian tourists; only Turkish citizens and those holding work visas are allowed to travel to that country.
“Thus, selling tour, transportation and accommodation services to the public before normal flights resume is unlawful,” he said.
“Airlines must have control over ticket sales. They are only allowed to sell tickets after securing flight permits to foreign countries. Passengers are advised to check the flight status at www.cao.ir before buying tickets.”
