Tehran’s Main Airport Slowly Comes Back to Life After Two Months of War

Commercial flights are gradually resuming at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, nearly two months after airspace closed following the outbreak of the US-Israel conflict with Iran. The airport reopened last week, and flight information screens that had gone dark are now flickering back on.

For weeks, the shutdown stranded travelers, disrupted businesses, and separated families. Now, eight domestic airlines are operating flights to 15 destinations, including Medina, Istanbul, Muscat, China, and Russia. But the current schedule is a shadow of what it once was. Before the war, the airport handled about 150 flights a day. Today, terminals that were bustling, then empty, are slowly filling again.

Maryam, a passenger trying to reach Toronto, described the ordeal. “After a lot of stress and problems, I finally found a ticket with an Iranian airline—first to Armenia with a long layover, then on to Canada,” she said.

Ramin Kashef Azar, CEO of Imam Khomeini Airport City, told Al Jazeera that the return of foreign carriers depends on “political stability and their own risk assessments.” The airport itself is about 95 percent operational, but 20 aircraft were destroyed during the conflict, according to the Iranian Civil Aviation Organization.

The airspace reopened in phases starting April 19, beginning with transit flights, then domestic routes, and now international operations. Yet foreign companies remain wary, watching the uncertain talks between Tehran and Washington.

The war hit other airports too—Mehrabad in Tehran, plus facilities in Kashan, Tabriz, Ahvaz, Mashhad, Khoy, and Urmia. Civilian aircraft were damaged. The broader economy also suffered: tour guide Babak lost his job when tours vanished. Travel agent Bijan cut his staff from 20 to two.

Nowruz, the Persian New Year and normally a peak travel season, passed in silence. But airports are stirring again. Each departure is a small step toward normalcy, even as the ground beneath remains fragile.