TEHRAN – Iran’s flag carrier IranAir is set to resume flights to and from the United Kingdom as of May 6 after months of suspension imposed to curb the spread of a novel coronavirus variant into the Islamic Republic.

“IranAir will resume flights between Tehran and London on May 6,” IRNA quoted Hossein Jahani, who presides over the airline’s public relations department, as saying on Sunday.

Jahani said the flights to London will be operated on Sundays and Thursdays every week due to the lifting of the COVID-19 restrictions in the UK.

In December, the Islamic Republic halted flights to and from the United Kingdom, preliminary for two weeks, and then the ban was initially extended for one month at the discretion of the Health Ministry to prevent the transmission of the ‘British’ variant and to try to maintain public health.

At that time, an ensuing wave of travel bans cut off UK travelers from much of Europe and other parts of the world. Some experts believed that there was no evidence the new variant was more deadly or would react differently to vaccines, but it was proving to be up to 70% more transmissible.

AFM