ERBIL () - Qamishlo International Airport in Syria will officially reopen within a month, once its internal security procedures are completed. Direct flights to Germany and Sweden are planned alongside domestic and regional routes, Kim Hussein Ibrahim, a Kurdish member of the Syrian parliament, told on Sept. 19.
Ibrahim said the airport is fully ready in terms of infrastructure and technical equipment, and that most of its systems are intact and were not damaged. Only the internal security procedures remain to be completed before the airport opens officially to air travel.
Asked when the airport will open, Ibrahim answered: "After a month, and President Ahmed al-Sharaa or the foreign minister may come."
The announcement follows work by the Syrian General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport, which has been renovating the airport since Feb. 25 to return it to full capacity in service of citizens.
On how the airport will be run, Ibrahim said the Syrian government is in control. "The Autonomous Administration has become part of the government, and the Syrian government is the one that controls the airport. Kurdish forces are also present at the airport because they have become part of state institutions,"he said.
Ibrahim said the employees will be selected on specific academic, professional, and technical criteria, and will come from the local area.
"There will be official recruitment competitions, and the application links will be published on the official page of the General Authority of Civil Aviation,"he said. The issue of hiring had also been discussed, he added, and the staff would be drawn from the people of Qamishlo and Hasaka province, who can submit applications directly through the links once they are published.
The airport will receive domestic, regional, and international flights. "In the initial operating phase, the airport's capacity will be between five and seven flights a day, since there is currently only one runway,"Ibrahim said.
Looking further ahead, he said: "In the future, if Qamishlo sees greater development and expansion, there is an idea for a project to build another airport outside the city."
Ibrahim said direct flights to European countries, particularly Germany and Sweden, are set to begin from Qamishlo. He said this will make travel considerably easier for citizens.
Asked whether the airport will receive flights from other countries and which company will operate the flights, he said: "As I said, the focus will primarily be on Sweden and Germany because of the large Kurdish community there. It is a commercial matter first and foremost, so as demand grows, the number of flights will increase and will include other countries."
On which carriers will operate the flights, Ibrahim said the Syrian General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport will deal with various companies, whether the national carrier, Syrian Airlines, or Qatar Airways, among others.
"Qamishlo International Airport, like Erbil International Airport or any other airport, has its own protocols for dealing with different airlines,"he said.
