Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA)

Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport (IKA) is Iran's principal international gateway and the airport through which most of the country's long-haul and foreign-carrier traffic is funneled. It sits well outside central Tehran and is functionally distinct from Mehrabad, which still handles most major domestic flying. That separation is one of the defining facts of the airport, because IKA is designed around international processing and cross-border traffic rather than around being a single all-purpose metropolitan airport.

The terminal environment combines large-scale international infrastructure with some very specific local operating realities. Terminal 1 remains the core commercial international facility, while the Salam Terminal expands capacity for additional traffic including religious travel peaks. Passengers can expect a full international airport layout with immigration, retail, exchange services, lounges, and hotel access, but also significant walking distances and the need to plan carefully around the airport's distance from the city. IKA is a serious gateway, though one whose utility depends heavily on understanding Tehran's dual-airport system and local payment constraints.

What makes IKA distinctive is that it functions both as a national front door and as a logistical threshold into Tehran rather than into the city center itself. The airport's size, airline mix, and purpose reflect Iran's external connectivity, yet the onward journey is shaped by Tehran traffic, metro timing, and transfer requirements to Mehrabad when domestic flights are involved. The terminal therefore feels like a true international gateway, but one whose effectiveness is tightly linked to good ground-planning outside the terminal walls.