After years of isolation, Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq now has two modern airports with international flights - one in Erbil, the Kurdish capital, and the other here in Sulymeinyah near the Iranian border. This
family of eight was waiting to board a Friday night flight to Istanbul - this was the first time anyone in the family had ever flown. They were going to Turkey to seek medical treatment for the elderly woman in the wheelchair. All domestic flights are handled by Iraqi Airways, which is usually hours late because of a shortage of planes.
Susan Taylor Martin is the senior correpondent for the St. Petersburg Times. During the past few years, she has written frequently from overseas hot spots including Afghanistan, Iraq and Israel.
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