Iran has extended a two-week suspension of flights to and from the UK until the end of January due to concerns over the new fast-spreading coronavirus strain, the head of the country’s Civil Aviation Organization (CAO) says.
The decision came as reports said Iran had detected the first case of infection with the new strain of the coronavirus found in Britain. On Tuesday, Health Minister Saeed Namaki confirmed the case.
National flag carrier Iran Air and Turkish Airlines, which carry out regular flights between Tehran and destinations in Britain, suspended them on Dec. 20 “due to the new circumstances in the spread of Covid-19 in the United Kingdom".
The suspension was extended on Monday, CAO head Turaj Dehghani Zanganeh told Iran’s official IRNA news agency.
Moreover, any traveler from destinations in the UK will be quarantined and the flight license of the offending airline will be revoked, he added.
Like many other international airlines, Turkish Airlines has suspended UK flights until the end of January. Dehghani Zanganeh said Iran has also asked Qatari and UAE airlines not to bring any passengers from the UK.