Commercial flights between Syria and Türkiye are set to resume within a week, Ashhad al-Salibi, the head of Syria’s General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport, announced Tuesday. His statement came as international flights began operating from Damascus International Airport.
The airport had been closed since Dec. 8, following the ouster of long-time dictator Bashar Assad by anti-regime forces.
Turkish Airlines halted all flights to Syria following the outbreak of the civil war in 2011.
Al-Salibi revealed that Syria has submitted a consent letter to Türkiye’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation and anticipates a response within two days. Flights between the two neighbors are set to begin within a week of receiving Türkiye’s approval.
Türkiye has offered assistance to its southern neighbor, preparing an action plan to help repair and rebuild Syria’s war-damaged infrastructure, including airports, bridges, roads, and railways. “We are committed to helping Syria restore its critical infrastructure,” said Türkiye’s Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu.
Infrastructure Challenges at Syrian Airports
Syria has five airports, two of which have recently become operational, albeit with significant shortcomings. Damascus International Airport, which handled around 100,000 flights last year, and Aleppo Airport, which managed 50,000–60,000, are both in dire need of modernization.
A Turkish inspection team recently evaluated Syria’s airports and found no functional radar systems, Uraloğlu said.
“They are still using computers from the 1990s, and there are no proper X-ray machines or detectors,” Uraloğlu said. He also highlighted that the runways are severely deteriorated. “The first flights to Damascus and Aleppo were conducted entirely on the pilots’ initiative, operating without proper systems and under visual conditions.”
The minister emphasized that Türkiye’s first priority will be to revive Damascus International Airport.
First Flights Take Off
On Tuesday, Damascus International Airport saw its first international flight in months. A Syrian Airlines plane bound for Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates departed at 11:45 a.m. with 145 passengers on board, according to state news agency SANA.
Qatar Airways has also resumed operations to Damascus after nearly 13 years, scheduling three weekly flights.
