Iraqi Airways

Iraqi Airways is one of those airlines whose history says more than its schedule. Founded in the 1940s, once flying Boeing 747s as far as New York, then grounded for years by war and sanctions – and today an airline with a surprisingly modern fleet mix that still isn’t allowed to fly into the EU on its own. For spotters, a YI registration in central Europe is therefore a real catch. This page shows you how to recognize Iraqi Airways, what is behind the EU ban and which types make up the fleet.

Iraqi Airways at a glance

Iraqi Airways is the state airline of Iraq, based at Baghdad Airport. It is fully owned by the Iraqi state and is a member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization, the trade association of Arab airlines. It does not belong to any of the major alliances.

The most important hub is Baghdad (BGW). Further bases are in Basra in the south and in Erbil in the Kurdistan Autonomous Region; Najaf and Sulaymaniyah also play an important role in the network. Many routes lead to neighboring regions: to the Gulf states, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran and Turkey. There are also seasonal flights to Saudi Arabia during the pilgrimage season, when Iraqi Airways takes the faithful to the Hajj.

Codes and callsign

• IATA code IA: appears in the flight number, so on departure boards, tickets and in schedules.
• ICAO code IAW: appears in the air traffic control flight plan and on flight trackers.
• Callsign IRAQI: this is how the crew identifies itself on the radio.
• Registration YI-: Iraq’s nationality mark, visible on the tail end of every Iraqi-registered aircraft.

With Iraqi Airways in particular, it pays to keep the flight number and the operating company apart. If an IA flight is operated with a leased aircraft, the tracker often shows the lessor’s code instead of IAW. The difference between flight number and callsign is explained in the guide Callsign and flight number.

The history: from biplane to 747

The beginnings at the state railways

Iraqi Airways was founded in 1945 as a department of the Iraqi state railways. In January 1946 it started flight operations – with small de Havilland Dragon Rapides, twin-engine biplanes for a few passengers. Soon after came the Vickers Viking and then the Vickers Viscount turboprops. In 1960 the airline separated from the railways and became independent.

Jets and long-haul

The first jets arrived in the 1960s: the Tupolev Tu-124 from the Soviet Union and the Hawker Siddeley Trident from Britain. The international network grew with them. In the 1970s the Boeing 707 followed and finally the Boeing 747, with which Iraqi Airways used landing rights in New York. This period is regarded as the airline’s peak: a modern long-haul operation backed by state subsidies.

1990: standstill through sanctions

With the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, this phase ended abruptly. The United Nations imposed sanctions, and flight operations largely came to a standstill. A large part of the fleet had already been moved abroad beforehand; among other things, Boeing 747s sat stored in Tunisia for years. In early 1992 domestic flights between Baghdad and Basra briefly resumed, but were soon suspended again.

The dispute with Kuwait Airways

During the occupation of Kuwait, aircraft of Kuwait Airways were taken to Iraq. Kuwait demanded compensation for this for years, and the legal dispute hung over Iraqi Airways like a shadow. Around 2010 even the dissolution of the airline was on the table. Only an agreement with compensation payments in the early 2010s ended the conflict and cleared the way for modernization.

Restart from 2004

In October 2004 Iraqi Airways resumed international service, first with a route from Baghdad to Amman. In 2005 domestic flights and Tehran followed, initially with support from a Jordanian company. In 2012 the airline placed a large order with Boeing, and in the early 2010s a new look followed with a livery dominated by green; in 2013 the first Boeing 737-800 arrived.

The fleet: a colorful mix

Hardly any airline of this size operates as many different types as Iraqi Airways. According to fleet overviews, the fleet in 2026 looks roughly like this – the numbers vary because individual aircraft are stored or reactivated:

Type	Number (approx.)	Use	Spotter note
Airbus A220-300	5	Short and medium haul	Slim fuselage, large engine under the wing
Airbus A320	3	Regional services	Classic ceo generation
Airbus A321	2	Regional services	Longer than the A320, additional doors
Airbus A330-200	1	Longer routes, pilgrim flights	Only Airbus widebody jet
Boeing 737-800	13	Backbone of regional services	One aircraft flies for the government
Boeing 737 MAX 8	6	Regional services	Serrated engine nacelles
Boeing 787-8	2	Long-haul, pilgrim flights	More 787s on order
Bombardier CRJ900	6	Domestic and short routes	Rear engines, T-tail
Boeing 737-700, 777-200LR	1 each	One-offs	True rarities

The backbone is the Boeing 737-800, supplemented by the newer 737 MAX 8. For longer routes Iraqi Airways has the Boeing 787-8 in its fleet; more 787s and the 737 MAX 10 are on order. The Boeing aircraft come from Boeing, the A220 and the A320 family from Airbus.

The exotics are the exciting ones: The Bombardier CRJ900 is rare among airlines in the Middle East, and the Airbus A220-300 is not standard in this region either. The Boeing 777-200LR is a one-off – if you get it in front of your lens, you’re lucky.

Historic: the types of the great era

If you sort through old photos, you’ll run into a long list of types. Besides the Dragon Rapide, Viking and Viscount, Iraqi Airways flew the Tu-124 and the Trident, later the Boeing 707, 727, 747 and 767. For cargo and special missions, Soviet types such as the Ilyushin Il-76 and Antonov An-12 were added. Pictures of these aircraft are archive material today – and precisely because of that, in demand.

The EU flight ban

What the EU Air Safety List is

The European Commission maintains a list of airlines that are not allowed to fly in the European Union, or only with restrictions. The basis is safety concerns – either with the airline itself or with the oversight authority of its country. How the list works and who is on it is explained in the article on the EU Air Safety List.

2015: Iraqi Airways goes on the list

In 2015 the European Commission added Iraqi Airways to the list for safety reasons. Since then the airline has not been allowed to operate flights into, out of or within the EU with its own aircraft and its own operating license.

The situation in 2026

In the June 2026 version of the list, Iraqi Airways is still in Annex A, meaning a full operating ban. Another Iraqi company, Fly Baghdad, is listed there with it. The EU reviews the list regularly; an end to the ban is only possible if the authorities judge the safety concerns to be resolved.

What this means for Europe

Iraqi Airways has used exactly this route: services to Europe, including to Frankfurt and Düsseldorf, ran at times with leased Boeing 737s from European operators. For you as a spotter this means: Even if an IA flight is on the departure board, what lands there is usually not an aircraft in Iraqi livery, but an aircraft in the lessor’s look or in a neutral paint scheme. Which routes are currently served changes often – don’t rely on old schedules.

How to recognize Iraqi Airways

Since 2012 the fleet has worn a livery dominated by green with the airline’s logo on the tail. The name “Iraqi Airways” appears on the fuselage, accompanied by Arabic script. Older photos from before 2012, by contrast, show earlier liveries – a good clue for dating pictures.

How to read registrations in general and what the prefixes reveal is explained in the guide Understanding aircraft registrations.

737-800 or 737 MAX 8? How to tell them apart

Because Iraqi Airways flies both 737 generations, a close look is worthwhile. At first glance they look almost the same in the same livery.

The engines are the surest feature. You’ll find more details on all generations in the guide to the 737 generations.

Spotting Iraqi Airways

In Germany an aircraft in Iraqi livery is hardly ever seen because of the EU ban – you can’t plan a sighting like that.

Your chances are better outside the EU. Iraqi Airways flies regularly to Turkey, including Istanbul, and to the Gulf region, for example Dubai. You’ll find tips for the spots there in the guides to plane spotting in Istanbul and plane spotting in Dubai. Amman, Beirut and Tehran are also in the network. Spotting there, you’ll meet the airline alongside companies like Turkish Airlines, Royal Jordanian, Middle East Airlines or Iran Air.

Common mix-ups

• Mistaking IA for “Iran Air” – Iran Air flies under IR, Iraqi Airways under IA.
• Equating an IA flight number with its own aircraft – in Europe a wet-lease partner with its own registration often flies.
• Logging a 737-800 as a MAX 8 – look at the engines, not just the livery.
• Treating an old livery as a current picture – photos from before 2012 show earlier color schemes.
• Mistaking the EU ban for an airport ban – it affects the airline, not its destinations or flight numbers.

Conclusion

Iraqi Airways is an airline with an extraordinary history: an early start at the state railways, great years with the 707 and 747, then more than a decade of standstill and a laborious restart. Today it flies with a modern but colorfully mixed fleet – just not into the EU on its own. If you want to photograph an aircraft in Iraqi livery, the best plan is a spot outside the EU, and to check exactly what is in the schedule beforehand.