Iraq's Mosul Int'l Airport resumes domestic flights after 11-year suspension

BAGHDAD, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's national carrier announced Thursday the resumption of domestic flights at Mosul International Airport, marking its return to operation after an 11-year hiatus following the Islamic State (IS) group's capture of the city in 2014.

Iraqi Airways confirmed that the first flight from the airport to Baghdad took off in the morning. The Iraqi Ministry of Transportation noted that the flight proceeded smoothly under Iraqi air traffic control, meeting all safety and infrastructure standards.

In a separate statement released by the ministry's media office, Minister of Transport Razzaq Muhaibis al-Saadawi said the launch of domestic flights was the first step, with plans to soon introduce international routes.

Hussein al-Zubaidi, head of the Airports Administration Directorate, said the reopening "will represent a qualitative leap in connecting the province with the world" and will help boost Mosul's economy and tourism.

The facility, originally established as a British military airbase in the 1920s, began transitioning to civil aviation with partial conversions in the 1950s and became a fully developed international civilian airport in the 1990s. After the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, it was converted into a U.S. military base. In December 2007, the airport resumed flights until it was seized by IS in 2014. Enditem