TEHRAN – Iran’s flag carrier, IranAir on Wednesday resumed flights to European destinations following a temporary suspension over the outbreak of the coronavirus, according to sources.

IranAir’s services to Europe, excluding Vienna, Stockholm and Goteborg, have been reestablished after a 48-hour halt, IRNA reported.

IranAir on Sunday announced the suspension of all its flights to Europe until further notice, a decision apparently linked to a ban on the carrier's planes from entering European airspace.

IranAir’s management board and Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs made the decision following talks with an unnamed European authority, the company said in a statement on its website, without specifying which routes will resume or whether they will be used to do more than repatriate Iranian nationals, Bloomberg reported.

The move came after the European Union Aviation Safety Agency banned three Airbus models within IranAir’s fleet from European airspace, because they no longer met required airworthiness standards, the body said in an emailed statement, adding that the carrier did not face a general ban. The A300/A310 and A330 planes hadn’t undergone necessary software upgrades, the Iran-focused website Bourse & Bazaar reported.

Routes to Vienna, Stockholm and Gothenburg, Sweden, are excluded from the decision, the IranAir statement said. IranAir also flies to London, Paris, Hamburg, Cologne and Frankfurt, according to its website.

AFM/MG