Mahan Air, the first and the largest private airline in Iran, has started operating weekly direct flights to the Italian capital city Rome from July 2, according to a press release.
The flight took off from Imam Khomeini International Airport and landed at Rome–Fiumicino International Airport "Leonardo da Vinci".
Each one-way ticket from Tehran to Rome has been priced at 33 million rials ($250).
The airline has already been operating direct flights to Milan.
Mahan also started operating direct flights to Shenzhen from June 30. Shenzhen is Mahan's fourth destination in China, following Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
According to Routesonline, the airline has also rescheduled Tehran–Guangzhou flights from two weekly flights to three.
Mahan Air said it is planning to add new foreign destinations in the near future, without providing further details.
Routesonline says Mahan is considering launching a new route to Eastern Europe. As of late July, the airline is expected to launch direct flights from Tehran to Banja Luka, the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Mahan Air, established in 1992, has the country’s largest fleet of aircraft. It was blacklisted by the US in 2011, as Washington accused the carrier of providing technical and material support to an elite unit of Islamic Revolution’s Guards Corps known as the Quds Force.
The US Treasury Department has threatened sanctions against countries and companies offering landing rights or services such as on-board dining to the airline's 31 aircraft.
