en.Wedoany.com Reported - A passenger flight of Syrian Airlines landed at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO) on August 16, 2026, ending a suspension of more than a year and a half on the route between Syria and the Russian capital, thereby resuming regular flights between the two countries.

The flight arrived at 06:44 local time and operated the return leg to Damascus International Airport (DAM) later that day. The route between the two capitals had been suspended since December 2024 due to the political situation in Syria, and upon resumption is scheduled to operate once a week on Sundays.

Omar Al Hosari, Director General of the General Authority of Civil Aviation, stated that this resumption is part of a broader effort to rebuild Syrian Airlines' regional and international presence, with the goal of reconnecting the country with the world. He mentioned that the authority plans to open more direct routes and expand travel options for Syrian citizens as part of a wider strategy to strengthen national air connectivity.

Al Hosari added that Syrian Airlines is expected to restore services to more regional and international destinations in the coming period, including new European routes that will be announced gradually.

The Moscow route is the latest in a series of routes recently restored by the airline. On August 15, 2026, a flight from Berlin landed directly in Damascus, reconnecting the two cities after nearly 14 years. Previously, Syrian Airlines had resumed direct service from Damascus to Amsterdam on July 2, 2026, marking its return to the European market, and restored weekly flights to Medina, Saudi Arabia, on August 11, 2026.

The airline, commonly known as Syrianair, has been under U.S. sanctions since the early 1980s, which have severely restricted its ability to purchase new aircraft or procure spare parts for its existing fleet. According to aviation data provider ch-aviation, the company's current fleet consists of 8 Airbus A320s, 2 A340-300s, 2 Tupolev Tu-134Bs, and 2 Ilyushin Il-76 cargo aircraft; due to a lack of available spare parts, 6 of the A320s and 2 of the A340-300s are grounded. Before the fall of the Assad regime, Syrian Airlines operated 4 routes to 5 destinations in 3 countries. The country's other major carrier, Cham Wings Airlines, currently operates 5 A320s on 2 routes serving 3 destinations.

Syrian civil aviation authorities also disclosed that overall air traffic in the country's airspace is gradually recovering. In July 2026, a total of 20,315 aircraft transited over Syrian airspace, indicating that activity in this regional airspace is steadily increasing as the aviation network recovers.