Jonathan Robins, Air Transport Reporter, Cirium
Cirium data shows that non-domestic capacity by seats rose by just over a tenth in August compared with a month earlier, to around 55,700 weekly seats. This was entirely attributable to local airlines Mahan Air and Iran Air, which increased their seat counts by 66% and 30%, respectively.
Of the scheduled seat departures for the month, around 15,600 are bound for Istanbul and 11,000 for Al Najaf, Iraq.
For September, Cirium data shows that just under 70,000 weekly international departing seats are scheduled.
Compared with 2025, international capacity to the country in August is down 49%, driven by the total absence of players such as Flydubai and Turkish Airlines, which last year operated a combined 20,000 weekly departing seats.
The latest data shows that for August, local carriers Mahan Air and Sepehran Airlines remain the largest players, with 15,600 and 10,500 weekly departing seats from the country.
As well as avoiding landing in Iran, international airlines continue to avoid flying through Iranian airspace, as major regulators have advised commercial operators against entering the territory given the risks from military operations.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), for example, has issued a bulletin recommending against operations for aviation within Iranian airspace at any altitude.
