UNITED KINGDOM: British Airways Delays Relaunch Of Flights To Iran

British Airways has postponed the long-awaited resumption of its flights to Iran until September, a report says. The six-weekly direct service to Tehran from London was due to start from July 14 but has now been pushed back due to “some technical issues,” The Telegraph has quoted a British Airways spokesperson as saying.

“While preparations for the new route have generally been progressing well, some technical issues have arisen which makes it sensible for us to put back the launch of flights from mid-July to September 1,” the spokesperson said.

“Customers who were booked to fly before September 1 will be notified of their flight cancellation and offered a number of options, including re-routing on alternative dates, full refunds or rebooking them to fly with other airlines. We look forward to opening the route in September.”

Iran’s media said in March that an agreement has been signed with Britain that would allow British Airways to resume flights to Iran after a hiatus of six years.

The agreement was announced by Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization (CAO) which said the flights by British Airways to Iran will resume from July 14.

British Airways had in January voiced interest in reinstating its direct flights to Iran.

"We are very interested in flying to Tehran and we are hopeful that it will form part of BA's network in the very near future," The CEO of British Airways, said. “We are actively looking at it as a destination," Walsh had emphasized.

This came following other indications that there is already a growing interest by British tourists to travel to Iran.

VIETNAM: Three BritishTourists Swept Down Vietnam Waterfall To Death

Three British tourists found dead at the foot of a surging waterfall in Vietnam fell into a current above the 20 metre drop-off, the director of a tour company said.

The bodies of two women and one man were retrieved Friday by scores of aid workers who scrambled down cliffs abutting the tiered waterfalls outside of Dalat, a city nestled in Vietnam's central highlands.

The Datanla falls are a popular hub for adventure tourists, with opportunities to rappel on the rocks and luge around the jungle park.

Le Viet Luc, the director of a company that runs tours to the site, said the trio was exploring one of the area's seven waterfalls without proper permission from the agency when they were swept up by a strong current.

"They fell into the stream of this waterfall and died after being hit by violent waters," he said, adding that their bodies were transferred to Ho Chi Minh City late Friday night.

The British Embassy in Hanoi released a statement on behalf of the family of the man, Christian Sloan, who local media reported to be 25 years old.

"Christian's death is a very sad loss to us. He was a very popular young man, formerly in the Royal Navy, who had many, many friends not just locally but around the world. He lived for life," the statement said.

The embassy declined to release the names of the two women, ages 18 and 25, who entered the country together earlier this month, according to state media.

"Our sympathies are with the families and friends at this difficult time. We are in close contact with local authorities in Vietnam on their behalf," the UK embassy said.

Vietnam and its neighbours in Southeast Asia are travel magnets for young backpackers, but accidents are frequent amid weak law enforcement and scant safety oversight

IRELAND: 6% Growth In Irish Tourism Expected For 2016

Fáilte Ireland has predicted Irish tourism will grow by 6% by the end of 2016.

The agency estimated the increase could amount to €8bn in total tourism revenues and that jobs will be created in the sector, according to its Annual Tourism Review, which is being launched today.

Last year, the industry was worth €7.8bn to the economy with €1.8bn going in taxes to the Exchequer.

7.3 million foreign visitors holidayed in Ireland in 2015, an increase of 11% on 2014.

Although the outlook is positive, the tourism agency said that continued growth depends on competitiveness.

It is also asking for acute shortage of hotel bedroom stock in Dublin to be addressed and is concerned about external factors such as currency exchange rates which are currently favourable to American and British tourists.