The German flag carrier Lufthansa has confirmed that it plans to push ahead with plans to resume a daily flight between Frankfurt and the Iranian capital Tehran this Friday after a break of six months when the airline suspended the route last June due to security concerns.
The decision to resume the route comes amidst mass protests in Iran, sparked by a cost-of-living crisis that is now threatening Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s grip on power.
Security forces have allegedly responded to the growing protests with the use of deadly force, with reports of body bags piling up at hospitals and morgues across the country, and notably in Tehran.
Verifying these reports has, however, become increasingly difficult due to the Iranian regime’s decision to block all internet access in the country, which has included reported military blocking of Starlink terminals that were smuggled into Iran.
Lufthansa has suspended flights to Tehran on several occasions in the last few years due to heightened security concerns in the region linked to Iran’s military activities towards Israel.
The airline last resumed daily non-stop flights between Frankfurt and Tehran in March 2025 before suspending the route just months later in June 2025. The decision followed a strike by Israel on Iran’s nuclear program, which was followed by a huge Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Lufthansa said the airline was still eyeing a January 12 restart, saying in an emailed statement:
“Lufthansa continues to suspend flights to Tehran and plans to resume services on 16 January, as previously communicated, while closely monitoring the situation on an ongoing basis.”
When asked what measures would be put in place to keep pilots and flight attendants safe, the airline said it was unable to comment publicly on “potential security measures.”
Austrian Airlines is part of the wider Lufthansa Group, and has been operating flights between Vienna and Tehran since last October. The airline suspended flights this weekend along with several other major international carriers, but plans to resume the service tomorrow.
Turkish Airlines has also canceled flights between its hub in Istanbul and Tehran for the next few days. Emirates and Qatar Airways have, however, resumed their regularly scheduled flights to the Iranian capital.
