TEHRAN - International flights from Chabahar Airport in southeastern Iran will resume in January, 2026 with services to Muscat, Karachi and Sharjah, the head of the Chabahar Free Trade-Industrial Zone said on Monday.

Mohammad-Saeed Arbabi said the resumption follows new planning to expand air transport links as part of the government’s broader strategy to develop the vast Makran coast.

According to Arbabi, Iran’s Kish Air and Varesh Airlines will operate three international routes under agreements reached between the Chabahar Free Zone Organization and Oghab Asaluyeh airport company.

Kish Air will launch flights on the Chabahar–Muscat route from Jan. 9 and on the Chabahar–Karachi route from Jan. 16, while Varesh Airlines will begin operating flights between Chabahar and Sharjah from Jan. 5, he said.

Arbabi said the resumption of international flights would facilitate access to Chabahar, help attract foreign tourists, boost trade exchanges and strengthen regional connectivity.

He added that as Iran’s only oceanic port, Chabahar has significant potential in tourism, transit, international trade and investment, and that expanding air routes is essential to realizing these capacities.

Makkoran, aka Makran or Mokran, is a semi-desert coastal strip, along the coast of the Sea of Oman.

AM