Syrian Airlines returns to Germany with twice-weekly Damascus–Berlin flights
Summary: Syrian Airlines began direct flights between Damascus and Berlin on November 10, its first service linking Syria and Germany in more than a decade. The route joins Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Vienna in a European network the national carrier has rebuilt this year, with a second German destination to follow.
Syrian Airlines, the country’s national carrier, began direct flights between Damascus and Berlin on November 10. It is the airline’s first service linking Syria and Germany in more than a decade, and the latest step in its steady return to European markets.
The route operates twice weekly, on Tuesdays and Fridays, with Airbus A320 aircraft. The Tuesday flight departs Damascus at 6:55 a.m. and arrives at Berlin Brandenburg Airport at 9:25 a.m. local time.
Omar Hosari, president of Syria’s General Authority of Civil Aviation and Air Transport, described the launch as an important step in re-expanding the national carrier’s network in Europe. He said it would ease travel for the Syrian community in Germany and support trade and tourism between the two countries. About 1 million Syrians settled in Germany during the civil war, and the authority said the new flights would spare them the time and effort of connecting through other airports.
Syrian Airlines is not alone on the route. German leisure airline Sundair began flying from Berlin Brandenburg to Damascus on August 15, operating twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays with 180-seat A320s. That service was the first direct connection between the German capital region and Syria since 2011, made possible by a bilateral air transport agreement Germany and Syria concluded in mid-July.
Berlin joins a European network that Syrian Airlines has rebuilt quickly over the past five months. Direct flights to Amsterdam resumed on July 2, and service to Copenhagen and Vienna followed in September. The authority says it is finalizing a second German destination, to be announced shortly, and regular flights between Aleppo and Moscow are due to begin on November 18.
Germany, home to roughly 1 million Syrians, is the only European market where the authority has said a second destination will follow. That is a clear signal of where it expects demand to run deepest.
