Baku, Azerbaijan, March 13
By Khalid Kazimov – Trend:
Iranian and Uzbek aviation officials have discussed the expansion of cooperation in aviation during a recent meeting.
Morad Esmaili, an Iranian aviation official, has said that the sides have discussed the issue of flying aircraft carrying Uzbek pilgrims to visit holy Saudi city of Mecca over Iran’s airspace, the official website of Iran’s aviation organization reported.
According to the official, the sides are expected to sign a MoU on the costs of Uzbek aircraft flying over Iran.
The Uzbek side has also called for the resumption of IranAir flights to Uzbekistan, he said.
Morad Esmaili added that Uzbekistan has proposed discount to Iran in order to encourage direct Iran Air flights to Uzbek airports.
The Islamic Republic’s official statistics indicate that the activity of the country’s airports in 2017 has registered some 8-percent rise compared to 2016.
The latest data released by Iran’s Airports Company, affiliated with the country’s Ministry of Roads & Urban Development indicates that over 490,968 domestic and international flights were carried out via Iranian airports in 2017, 8 percent more year-on-year.
More than 61 million passengers were transferred via Iranian airports in the 12-month period, 9 percent more than in the same period of the preceding year.
Also, 595 million kilograms of cargo was transported via Iranian airports in the period, which is 10 percent more compared to 2016.