Iran lost 52% or $76 million of its revenues from overflight services in 2020 to rank 28th in the world in terms of income from air navigation services, the managing director of Iran Airports Company said.
“Air passenger traffic decreased by 51.7% or more than 25 million people, and the number of arrival-departure operations fell by 67% in 2020 compared with the year before,” Siavash Amirmokri was also quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
"About 750 to 800 flights used to cross Iran's airspace each day before the outbreak of the virus. The number has declined to 130 at present," he was quoted as saying by News.mrud.ir.
The official, however, expressed optimism over the gradual return of international flights to Iran’s airspace over time, saying: "We expect the number to reach 400 to 450 flights each day."
Experts believe Iran's aviation industry, a sector harshly hit by the spread of the new coronavirus, needs at least three years to make a comeback.
Latest statistics released by Iran Airport Company indicate a 50% year-on-year decline in the total number of foreign flights using Iranian airspace during the month to Dec. 20.
A total of 12,322 foreign flights passed through Iran's airspace during the month, which figure stood at 12,068 in the previous month.
The total number of overflights reached 76,509 for the first three quarters of the current Iranian year (started March 20), indicating a 67% drop compared with the corresponding period of last year, mostly due to the outbreak of Covid-19 and the subsequent suspension of airlines' operations.
Meanwhile, Iranian airports' domestic passenger traffic during the first three quarters of the current fiscal year (March 20-Dec. 20, 2020) declined by 42% year-on-year to 18.3 million, according to the latest report published by Iran Airports Company.
Over 142,496 tons of cargos were handled during the nine months under review, which show a 41% drop compared with the corresponding period of last year.
The IAC report also shows that airports in Iran handled 200,235 landings and takeoffs in Q1-3, posting a 25% YOY fall.
Tehran's Mehrabad International Airport handled 6.78 million passengers, 39% lower than the same period of last year.
Mashhad International Airport and Kish International Airport came next with 2.17 million and 1.14 million passengers, respectively.
Mehrabad handled 72,644 landings and takeoffs during the period, considerably higher than other airports of Iran.
IAC's datasets do not include figures on Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport that accounts for the largest portion of international flights operated to/from Iran.
Close to 1.72 million passengers were transported domestically during the ninth month of the current fiscal year (Nov. 21-Dec. 20, 2020), indicating a 51% year-on-year drop.
Mehrabad International Airport topped the list of Iranian airports in terms of domestic flights during the month. The airport handled 35% of landings and takeoffs, and accounted for 35.8% and 32.9% of total domestic air passenger traffic and cargo transportation.
Landings and takeoffs decreased by 20% to 23,710 during the ninth month of the year. Cargo transportation also experienced a 40% decline to 15,398 tons, IAC data show.
The report also includes data on the cancelation of Iranian air flights. As per the report, 48% of Iranian airliners' flights were canceled during the month to Dec. 20.
Sepehran Airlines topped the list, with its cancelation rate standing at 74% during the month under review. It was followed by Mahan Air, with 67%, Zagros Airlines with 60%, Taban Airlines with 59% and ATA Airlines with 57% cancelation.
Meraj Airlines, Kish Air and Iran Air recorded the best performance in this regard, as their cancellation rate stood at 24%, 25% and 34%, respectively.
