Air Arabia, a budget airline based in Sharjah, is slated to resume flights to Kabul International Airport from Sharjah International Airport starting January 10, as reported by Travel Radar.
This resumption comes after a two-year suspension following the collapse of Afghanistan’s previous government in August 2021.
The Taliban-run Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation announced that Jazeera Airways, another low-cost carrier from the UAE, is also preparing to start services to Kabul.
FlyDubai, based in Dubai, recently became the first international airline to reinstate flights to Afghanistan after the 2021 suspension.
While Kabul is currently served by Ariana Afghan Airlines and Kam Air, Air Arabia’s return marks the first foreign airline to resume international flights there.
With the upcoming operations of Jazeera Airways and Air Arabia, the number of international carriers at Kabul’s airport will increase to three, a reduction from the six that operated before 2021.
Imamuddin Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesperson for the transportation ministry, stated, “Air Arabia has been approved to initiate flights from Kabul, and Jazeera Airways is also planning direct flights from Afghanistan.”
Ahmadi emphasized that these renewed routes would provide more transportation options and could lead to competitive pricing, benefiting Afghan travelers. Besides Kabul, Afghanistan has other airports like Kandahar International Airport and Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport, with the latter already served by Iran’s Mahan Air.
