Iran Air has hiked international fares by up to 90 percent after the Iranian government stopped subsidizing jet fuel.
The Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported that a round-trip flight from Tehran to London will now cost 17.6 million rials ($1,430), an 85 percent increase over the 9 million rial fare prior to the hike. Fares from Tehran to Hamburg, Paris, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur will also rise between 60-90 percent.
International trade sanctions against the Iranian government have forced down the value of the Iranian currency against the US dollar by 40 percent since August, thereby driving up the price of fuel by about 90 percent. While the government has in the past protected state-owned airlines by allowing them to buy fuel at special bank rate enjoyed by some of the country’s key industries, the government in September decided that airlines must now buy fuel at regular prices.
