VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGB #3158/01 3420955
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 080955Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO IRAQ COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BAGHDAD 003158 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR ECON IZ
SUBJECT: RRT ERBIL: RAPID GROWTH IN KURDISTAN REGION,S AIR 
LINKS 
 
BAGHDAD 00003158  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  (U) This is an RRT Erbil cable. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Summary: The growth of two international airports 
in the Kurdistan Region (KR) -- Erbil International Airport 
(EIA) and Sulaimaniyah International Airport (SIA) -- has 
significantly increased air travel options for consumers and 
paved the way for broader linkages in the region and beyond. 
In contrast to Erbil and Sulaimaniyah, Dohuk Province has no 
commercial airport; the one facility capable of being easily 
developed for commercial use is occupied by the Turkish Army. 
 The new 16-gate terminal at EIA, which has an annual gate 
capacity of approximately three million passengers but entry 
and check-in capacity of only approximately one million 
passengers, is tentatively scheduled to begin operation in 
early March 2010.  EIA's 80 weekly flights serve seven 
western European cities and six major cities in the region. 
SIA, with a smaller capacity, serves only three cities in 
Europe and six regional cities with less frequency. 
Currently three International Air Transport Association 
(IATA) member airlines serve EIA, but only one serves SIA.  A 
USD50 commission per person per flight all non-Iraqi airlines 
must pay to Iraqi Airlines has been an unwelcome tax to 
consumers.  End Summary. 
 
Erbil and Its New Airport 
------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) RRTOff met with KRG consultant Stafford Clarry (an 
Amcit who is a long-time resident in the KR) October 15 to 
tour Erbil's new state-of-the-art airport; Clarry provided a 
progress update on December 1.  The KRG has given Clarry a 
mission to use the new Erbil airport as a major component of 
a KR outreach marketing plan.  He said the tentative plan is 
for a March 3, 2010 opening; the KRG does not want to run 
past Nowruz, the Kurdish New Year celebrations on March 21. 
Clarry said that although increased economic activity in the 
KR has created demand for moderately increasing air travel, 
the larger vision for EIA is for Erbil to become a regional 
hub, much like Singapore and Inchon are for southeast and 
east Asia, respectively.  For this reason the KRG called in a 
Korean management consulting team from the company that 
manages Inchon International Airport, signing a five-year 
agreement approximately one year ago.  There is currently a 
team of 25 Koreans working at EIA in all areas of airport 
operations and management, heavier on the technical side at 
present but flexible enough to modify support as the new 
terminal begins to service flights. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Clarry said that the only remaining task on the 
physical plant side was installation of the security cameras. 
 He said that the baggage screening equipment was recently 
put in place, all construction was complete, and training for 
personnel was ongoing.  He said that the KRG is still in the 
process of completing final international approval. 
According to Clarry, thirty days after submission, likely in 
early January, certification will become effective.  He said 
that at present there is no hurry to open the new airport as 
there is not an imminent demand for larger aircraft or larger 
volume than the existing terminal can handle.  The KRG,s 
initial target for the new airport was to be able to 
accommodate 2.5 to four million passengers annually. 
However, entry/check-in capacity for departing travelers is 
only estimated at one million passengers annually, although 
the rest of the terminal could accommodate three million. 
Currently there are only two baggage claim carousels, but 
should expansion become necessary in the future, there are 
thoughts of constructing an entirely separate arrivals 
building, enabling the departures area to expand.  The 
aerodrome, which features one of the longest runways in the 
Qaerodrome, which features one of the longest runways in the 
world at 4,800 meters, is estimated to be able to handle up 
to ten million passengers annually. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The new terminal features two VVIP lounges in a 
separate building that have self-contained immigration 
processing, ticketing, and security procedures.  There is 
also a separate entrance to the main terminal for 
Commercially Important Persons (CIPs) that provides expedited 
ticketing services and access directly to the business class 
lounge for all first and business class ticket holders.  The 
terminal,s 16 gates are split into two wings by the central 
departure atrium. 
 
¶6. (SBU) From its opening on July 7, 2005, EIA has steadily 
expanded it flight options for consumers.  EIA currently 
services approximately 80 passenger flights and dozens of 
cargo flights per week.  Some routes have arisen from the 
Kurdish diaspora,s demand for travel between Kurdistan and 
Europe, others due to the growth in trade between Kurdistan 
and the region.  To date the growth has been almost 
exclusively westward toward Europe and the Mediterranean and 
south to the Arabian Gulf.  EIA boasts connections to seven 
western European cities, including Dusseldorf, Gothenburg 
(Sweden), London, Malmo (Sweden), Oslo, Stockholm, and 
 
BAGHDAD 00003158  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
Vienna, and six cities in the region, including Amman, Manama 
(Bahrain), Beirut, Damascus, Dubai, and Istanbul.  Flights to 
two additional cities, Athens and Larnaca (Cyprus) have 
tentative approval for charter flight service but have not 
yet begun flying.  A seventh city in the region, and the only 
city to the east that is served by the airport, is Tehran, 
connected by a single flight each week operated by Iraqi 
Airways.  According to Clarry and KRG Minister of Interior 
Karim Sinjari, KRG and EIA authorities have held discussions 
with Air France and Lufthansa and are hopeful that Erbil will 
be connected to Paris and Frankfurt soon.  An agreement with 
these two airlines will boost the number of International Air 
Transport Association (IATA) member airlines to five; 
Austrian Airlines (OS), Gulf Air (GF) and Royal Jordanian 
(RJ) are the other three.  There are 13 flights each week to 
Western Europe, including four each to Stockholm and Vienna, 
and 24 flights each week in the region, including daily to 
Amman, three to Manama, five to Beirut, and four to Istanbul. 
 The domestic flight map only features four Iraqi cities, one 
of which is Sulaimaniyah.  There is only a single flight each 
week to each of the following Iraqi cities:  Baghdad, Basra, 
and Najaf.  Clarry said that discussions are also in progress 
with Emirates Airlines to increase service to Dubai.  He 
mentioned that if it should ever become necessary, the new 
airport could accommodate the jumbo A380 aircraft. 
 
Sulaimaniyah International Airport (SIA) 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) On November 4, RRTOff met with SIA acting director 
Abdul Khaliq Mohamed Abdul Raheem, to discuss growth in SIA's 
air traffic.  The airstrip was built in the 1970's as an air 
base and used heavily by the Iraqi military in the 1980's 
during the war with Iran.  However, almost no fixed-wing 
aircraft landed on the runway for nearly 14 years until 
construction for a proper airport was begun in December 2003, 
and the airport was opened for passenger air traffic in July 
¶2005.  SIA now supports nearly 60 passenger flights per week. 
 At present there is no separate air service for cargo 
flights, but a Sharjah-based air cargo company is preparing 
to start flights in 2010.  Abdul Raheem said that the 
long-term vision for SIA is to expand routes to the east (but 
not to Iran), including China and other East Asian nations. 
When asked about service to Iran, he said that there was 
simply no demand for air service to Iranian cities.  He said 
that people traveling to Iran have more time than money and 
would much rather pay USD30 to take the daily 12-hour bus 
trip to Tehran than pay for a flight that would cost several 
times that amount.  Most business-related travel is to 
Beirut, Dubai and Istanbul.  Despite significant Iranian 
exports to the KR and Iraq, there is surprisingly little 
business air travel. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Abdul Raheem described a de facto tax to travelers 
in the Iraqi market:  a USD50 per person, per flight 
commission that all non-Iraqi airlines operating in Iraq must 
pay to Iraqi Airlines as the national carrier.  He said that 
at the end of 2008, there were attempts to begin to address 
this fee that is passed along to the traveler, but there has 
not been significant movement on the issue.  He expressed 
hope that this system would be changed.  SIA's flight 
schedule is more domestically and regionally focused, 
boasting only four flights to Europe weekly (two to 
Stockholm, which continue on to London, and one each to 
Munich and Dusseldorf).  Regional international flights 
include five to Amman weekly, three to Istanbul, two each to 
Beirut and Dubai, and one each to Cairo and Damascus.  Like 
QBeirut and Dubai, and one each to Cairo and Damascus.  Like 
EIA there is only one flight weekly each to Basra and Najaf, 
but SIA serves Baghdad daily.  Finally, two flights each week 
link EIA and SIA.  Royal Jordanian is the only IATA airline 
that serves SIA to date, although Abdul Raheem said that 
discussions are progressing with Gulf Air to initiate service 
to Bahrain sometime in 2010. 
 
Dohuk Province 
----------------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU) In sharp contrast to the other two provinces of the 
KR, Dohuk has no operational commercial airport.  Bamerni 
airfield, to the northeast of Dohuk City near the Turkish 
border, could potentially be developed into a commercial 
facility, but is currently occupied by units of the Turkish 
Army that are a legacy of earlier Turkish incursions against 
the PKK.  Dohuk Governor Tamar Ramadan has described plans to 
build a completely new facility southeast of Dohuk near the 
Mosul Dam.  Governor Tamar believes an airport is a key 
factor in developing tourism in the area.  The province is 
conducting a feasibility study for the proposed new airport. 
 
Comment: 
-------- 
 
¶10. (U) Although KRG visions may appear overly optimistic, 
 
BAGHDAD 00003158  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
the increase in the number of flights to and from the KR in 
just over four years is striking.  As members of the Kurdish 
diaspora continue to travel back more frequently, as the 
growing economy in the KR provides increasing opportunities 
to people to enter the middle class, and as Erbil is 
increasingly seen as a "safe option" within Iraq to host 
national and international gatherings, further steady growth 
seems likely.  EIA will try to market itself as a 
geographically central air hub for the region, but it faces 
stiff competition. 
HILL