TEHRAN - Iran’s Qeshm Air on Tuesday launched its maiden weekly direct flight connecting Tehran to Brussels with a return leg set to be operated on the same date.

The single weekly service may be extended to two or three in the future, ISNA quoted the airline’s CEO Mahmoud Shekarabi as saying on June 25.

Qeshm Air is using Airbus A319s on the roughly 4000 kilometers route that takes some six hours.

The private airline has sealed a deal with U.S. planemaker Boeing to buy 10 Boeing 737 MAX jets, Press TV reported earlier this month. The 737 MAX is equipped with the latest technologies that have given it the highest efficiency, reliability and passenger comfort in the single-aisle market.

Last November, Qeshm Air received its TCO (third country operator) license from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), announcing five flights to Europe, including one Tabriz-Hamburg. Brussels, Paris, Stockholm, Amsterdam, and Cologne were among the destinations, according to Air Journal.

Two other Iranian airlines, namely Mahan Air and Zagros Airlines, have recently launched new direct flights to Spain and Russia respectively in a bid to accelerate the pace of tourism growth in the country.   

Refurbishing Iran’s aviation industry is essential for tourism boom in the country that aims to lure 20 million foreign travelers annually by 2025.

AFM/MG