( CNN ) -- Even during difficult times , Iraqi Airways is aiming high . Earlier this year Iraq 's national carrier started expanding its route network for the first time in 23 years . It added flights between Baghdad and London , Frankfurt , Dusseldorf , and even Kuwait . In the next few months , the airline is planning on adding connections to Copenhagen , Stockholm , Kuala Lumpur , and destinations throughout China , hoping ultimately to expand its network from 15 to 40 by 2017 . `` The main draw right now is for Iraqis visiting family and friends . There are four million Iraqis living outside of Iraq , so that 's a big market , '' says Saad Al Khafaji , a spokesman for the airline . John Strickland , an independent transport consultant , notes that the country 's position as a recovering post-war country actually puts the airline in good stead . `` There 's a short-term boost from all the workers going in to get the country back on its feet , including NGOs and construction companies . Now that it 's on the mend , there 's a lot of potential , and as the oil industry continues to grow , it will continue to generate a lot of interest , '' he says . Read more : Iraqi women push to play . The carrier first attempted a comeback in 2010 , but was thwarted by a $ 1.2 billion lawsuit by Kuwait , which claimed Iraq owed it for aircraft destroyed during the first Gulf War . Now that the suit has been settled , Iraqi Airways seems eager to again reach for the skies . Al Khafaji says the company has invested $ 700 million so far on a new fleet , including ten Boeing 787 Dreamliners . `` If you look at the planes Iraqi Airways is ordering , they 're really moving towards the next generation aircraft , '' says Strickland . `` Given Iraq 's location , it will put them in a position where they 'll be able to reach most places in the world on a non-stop basis . '' The Iraqi government is also making significant contributions on the ground . The country 's vast oil revenues ( it is now OPEC 's second biggest producer ) are helping to renovate libraries , museums and archaeological relics -- such as the 1,500-year-old Arch of Ctesiphon . `` The government 's objective is to show Iraq is n't just about bombings . There is actual movement to restore the museums , and bring back some of the tourists , '' says Denise Natali , a Middle East expert at the National Defense University in Washington . Iraq 's Ministry of Transport is also investing heavily in its airports . Plans are currently underway to add three new terminals to Baghdad Airport , doubling its annual capacity to 15 million passengers . Similarly ambitious airport projects are in the works throughout the country , backed partly by the premise that a transport hub will spur growth in the surrounding cities . Read more : World records in Dubai . `` The cities will grow towards the airport , '' says Layla Kareem , the project manager for yet-to-be-built Middle Euphrates International Airport ( MEIA ) . The airport , which will have a capacity of 60 million passengers annually after the completion of the first stage ( projected 2017 ) , will be situated near the holy city of Karbala , a place of pilgrimage for the region 's Shiite Muslims . There is still the issue of ongoing violence in the capital and other parts of the country that the tourism industry has the contend with . The last few months have been the deadliest in the country for five years . According to the United Nations mission to Iraq , last month witnessed 1,045 violent deaths , and another 712 in April , leaving one to ponder whether the country 's investment is n't premature . `` There 's this idea that the government is n't functioning due to infighting . The truth is , in spite of the terrible bombings in Baghdad , you have considerable progress in the North and South . Those are areas the violence has n't really touched , '' says Natali . `` At the end of the day , it 's the airports that bring in the people that are going to make Iraq stronger . As the airports develop , so too do the cities and towns around them . ''
Iraqi Airways is expanding its fleet and destinations . Expansion stalled in annual because of multi-billion dollar lawsuit from Karbala . Being a post-war recovering nation puts country at advantage , says transport consultant . Iraqi Airways has ordered three Boeing 787 Dreamliners .