Austrian Airlines (OS) announced that the carrier will add, from June 2011, three weekly direct non-stop flights from Vienna Airport (VIE) to Baghdad Airport (BGW) in Iraq to its Middle Eastern destinations timetable. Austrian Airlines already flies six times per week from Vienna to Erbil Airport (ERB) in northern Iraq and will be the first major European airline to add Baghdad Airport to its regular network. Austrian Airlines will provide, through connections to Baghdad via Vienna, from around 130 destinations in the world as well as many more via Star Alliance code share partners such as United Airlines (UA) and Lufthansa (LH).
Direct Non-Stop Flights from Vienna to Baghdad Airport in Iraq
Austrian Airlines (OS) is planning to become the first major European airline to again fly directly from Europe to Baghdad Airport (BGW) in Iraq. The Austrian carrier, which is part of the Lufthansa group and a Star Alliance partner, plans to introduce three weekly flights from early June 2011 from Vienna Airport (VIE) to Baghdad International Airport (BGW).
The Austrian Airlines flights to Baghdad will be on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Flights will leave Vienna Airport at 10 am to arrive in Baghdad four hours later at 3 pm, Iraqi time. The return flights will leave Baghdad Airport at 4 pm to arrive back in Vienna at 7:30 pm, Central European Time.
In contrast to parent company Lufthansa, which in 2010 announced but quickly cancelled flights to Baghdad Airport, Austrian Airlines will use its own planes and pilots and not a specialized independent contractor. Austrian Airlines will use Airbus A320 planes on the flights to Baghdad.
No Cheap Flights to Baghdad Airport in Iraq
Austrian Airlines will not face much immediate competition on the European route to Baghdad and prices of plane tickets are expected to remain relatively expensive. However, it may well worth paying more for the convenience of direct flights from Europe to Baghdad on a very reliable airline. Turkish Airlines flights via Istanbul currently offer the most realistic competition on the route from Europe to Baghdad.
Austrian Airlines one-way fares from Vienna to Baghdad are available from around €600 for discounted tickets, €900 for full-fare economy class tickets, and €1,600 for business class seats. (These ticket prices are currently roughly the same as for Austrian Airlines’ flights from Vienna to Erbil Airport in Northern Iraq – a route on which Austrian faces competition from amongst others Lufthansa and Air Berlin.)
Austrian Airlines was one of the first major carriers to have introduced flights to Erbil Airport (ERB) in Northern Iraq and may benefit from being an early mover again. Austrian Airlines can feed passengers through Vienna to Baghdad flights from the around 130 destinations served by the airline, including New York (JFK) and Washington DC in the USA. However, as a Star Alliance member and code-share partner of United Airlines and Lufthansa, travelers from all over the world will be able to book through tickets via Vienna to Baghdad Airport.
Henk Bekker - Henk Bekker is a freelance travel writer currently living on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
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