# Kish International Airport

Kish International Airport (IATA: KIH, ICAO: OIBK) (Persian: فرودگاه بین المللی کیش, Foroudgâh-e Beyn Almelali-ye Kish) is an international airport on Kish Island, Iran.

## Description

The Kish International Airport serves as the entry point for the hundreds of thousands of tourists who come to Kish Island. The airport grants 14-day visa-free entry foreign citizens who enter from a foreign country under a different scheme from that of mainland Iran.
Prior to the Iranian Revolution, Iran had an outstanding order for two Concorde aircraft. These aircraft were supposed to be used on Kish-Paris and Kish-London routes to serve the luxury tourism market that Kish was supposed to serve. The airport had been designed to handle Concorde's landings and take-offs.

## History

In the 1980s, the Kish Free Zone Organisation (KFZO) was created. It offered visa-free travels to the islands for foreigners, and 15-year tax exemptions to foreign investors. The plan was to compete with Dubai's attractiveness for international business. The plan failed as the airport was mainly served by Iranian airlines. It became mainly used by Iranians coming to enjoy the looser rules of the island.
In 1998, the 11-month construction of Terminal 5 started, covering a 5,500 square meters area, with a budget of RIs 2,245 million financed by the Organization of Kish Free Trade Zone (FTZ).
In 2015, a new terminal was planned that would turn Kish International Airport into the second-largest airport of the country with a 4.5 million passengers capacity per year. 2.7 million passengers travelled through the airport that year.

## Operational Departments

Air Traffic Service and Aviation Electronics are two major departments of Kish airport responsible for aeronautical operations services.

## Airlines and destinations

| Airlines | Destinations |
| Air1Air | Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Asa Jet | Tehran–Mehrabad |
| ATA Airlines | Isfahan, Mashhad, Shiraz, Tabriz, Tehran–Mehrabad, Yazd |
| AVA Airlines | Isfahan, Kermanshah, Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Caspian Airlines | Gorgan, Isfahan, Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Chabahar Airlines | Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| flydubai | Dubai–International |
| FlyPersia | Isfahan, Mashhad, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Iran Air | Asaluyeh, Bandar Abbas, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Iran Airtour | Mashhad, Rasht, Shiraz, Tabriz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Iran Aseman Airlines | Mashhad, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Iraqi Airways | Baghdad |
| Kish Air | Abadan, Ahvaz, Asaluyeh, Bandar Abbas, Dubai–International, Gorgan, Isfahan, Kerman, Mashhad, Rasht, Sari, Shiraz, Tabriz, Tehran–Mehrabad, Urmia, Yazd, Zahedan, Zanjan |
| Mahan Air | Kerman, Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Meraj Airlines | Isfahan, Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Pars Air | Abadan, Ahvaz, Isfahan, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad, Yazd |
| Qeshm Air | Ahvaz, Bandar Abbas, Isfahan, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Saha Airlines | Isfahan, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Sepehran Airlines | Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Taban Air | Baghdad, Mashhad, Najaf, Shiraz, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Varesh Airlines | Isfahan, Mashhad, Rasht, Sari, Tehran–Mehrabad |
| Yazd Airways | Yazd |
| Zagros Airlines | Ahvaz, Isfahan, Mashhad, Tehran–Mehrabad |

## Iran Kish Air Show

The Kish International Airport is the main host of the Iran Kish Air Show, the aviation airshow held biennially.