Iran’s flag carrier Iran Air has launched three new flight routes to Qatar amid a boom in bilateral relations that has helped trade flourish between the two countries.
A senior Iran Air official said on Sunday that the new routes will accommodate flights between three cities in southern Iran to the Qatari capital Doha.
Accoring to Iran Air, routine weekly flights to Doha from airports in southern cities of Bandar Abbas, Asaluyeh and Lamerd are the three flight routes.
Iran Air is using ATR 72-600 turboprops for operation in the new Doha routes.
As planned, the flight between Bandar Abbas and Doha will be operated Sundays and Thursdays every week, Iran Air announced.
The flight from Assaluyeh leaves for Doha on Sundays and the flight from Lamerd, in Fars province, to Doha will be operated on Thursdays.
The new flight routes come amid growing economic and political relations between Iran and Qatar. That has come against the backdrop of a nearly three-year-old blockade imposed on the Persian Gulf country by several Arab states in the region, including Saudi Arabia.
Iranian businesses have taken a more active role in Qatar since the blockade was imposed in June 2017.
The routes also come after Iran launched a first shipping service from Bushehr to Qatar’s Hamad Port in August.