Malaysia AirAsia X to begin direct flights to Iran

The LCC will offer 3X-weekly Airbus A330-300 schedules from both Bangkok’s Don Mueang International and Kuala Lumpur’s KLIA2 airports to Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International.

AirAsia X CEO Benyamin Ismail said the move will open up a new link “connecting Asia and Australasia with the Middle East.”

AirAsia X canceled its 4X-weekly KLIA-Tehran service in 2012, because of pressure resulting from sanctions and “challenging economic and business conditions,” but was granted a new air operator’s certificate by the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran earlier this year.

Ismail said the revival of direct flights to Tehran from Kuala Lumpur would help improve bilateral relations “while encouraging trade and tourism activities between the cities.” The carrier has intimated that plans to expand to a daily service are also under consideration.

Thai AirAsia X, which will operate the Bangkok-Tehran services, said the new schedule would help push tourism from Iran to Thailand.

Thai AirAsia X CEO Nadda Buranasiri said the new Bangkok service “is a huge milestone for Thai AirAsia X as it marks the first direct low-cost airline to connect the Middle East and the people of Tehran to Bangkok and beyond.”

Earlier this year, local media said the carrier was considering expanding services from Tehran to Australia, China, Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines if initial schedules prove successful. Additionally, Ismail said at a conference in January 2106 that previously closed routes, such as London and Paris, “are still in (our) plans.”

“We have options, but need to make sure it doesn’t devalue our yields and that the costs make sense for us,” he said.

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