Basra International Airport BSR

Basra International Airport (ORMM) is the main airport of southern Iraq, serving the city of Basra and its oil-producing region. It sits on the outskirts of the city and is one of the country’s busiest: around 535,000 passengers used it in 2022, making it Iraq’s fourth-busiest airport after Baghdad, Najaf and Erbil. It is also one of the bases of the national carrier, Iraqi Airways. It was built in the 1980s and reopened to civilian traffic in June 2004, after the 2003 invasion.

Terminals

There is a single passenger terminal, with arrivals and departures in the same building, so you will never need to change terminals. The airport has a 4,000-metre runway, one of the longest in the country.

Airlines and destinations

Besides Iraqi Airways, Gulf and regional carriers such as Emirates, Qatar Airways, flydubai, Turkish Airlines and Royal Jordanian operate here. The most common connections are to Dubai, Doha, Amman, Istanbul, Beirut, Cairo and Baghdad, with routes to Delhi and Muscat as well. This is a regional airport: from Europe or the Americas you will need to connect through one of those hubs.

Services

The terminal has shops and places to eat, but services are more basic than at the big Gulf airports. The airport has been through renovation work, so what is available may change from one visit to the next.

Tips

Check your flight with the airline shortly before you travel, as schedules and routes change often. Also read your government’s travel advice for southern Iraq and sort out any visa you need well in advance. Get to the airport with plenty of time to spare, as access and security checks can take a while.