Romanian airline Dan Air to operate flights from Iraq to Europe

Romanian airline Dan Air recently partnered with Fly Baghdad and will operate flights from Iraq to Europe. Fly Baghdad is prohibited from flying to Europe after failing to abide by safety regulations.

The Romanian company will fly from Baghdad and Erbil to Dusseldorf, Berlin, and Copenhagen for a period of two years.

The airline from Iraq has leased a Dan Air aircraft under an ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance) partnership. The first flight will take place on December 23, on the Baghdad-Berlin route.

The Iraqi airline was banned from operating within European Union airspace over a series of safety concerns, particularly regarding crew fatigue management, according to FlightGlobal. As a result, the European Commission included it on the blacklist. Its request for a third-country operator’s authorization from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency was also rejected.

"Practically, as a partner, we will help Fly Baghdad transport passengers to destinations in Europe where the company from Iraq currently does not have the right to fly. The demand for these flights is high, given that there are many passengers traveling for personal or professional reasons. Beyond operating these flights, where Dan Air will provide the aircraft with the crew, our company will also help our partners in Iraq to become legislatively regulated so that, in the future, they can operate these flights under their own brand," said Dan Air CEO, Matt Ian David, in the press release.

Dan Air was founded in 2017. The company has previously operated ACMI flights for various internationally renowned airlines such as Jazeera Airways, Transavia, TUI, Air Moldova, Air Baltic, Air Serbia, and Wizz Air.

The company now operates regular flights exclusively from the "George Enescu" International Airport Bacau after leaving the new Brasov Airport.

(Photo source: Dan Air on Facebook)