US sanctions have been breached by nineteen people and companies in Europe and Asia who acted as middlemen for Iranian airline Mahan Air, allowing it procure supplies from the United States in violation of U.S. sanctions, the US Commerce Department said yesterday. The companies are based in Turkey, Armenia, Greece, Iran, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. They included Greece's Aeolian Airlines and Armenia's Vertir Airlines. The notice charged that the middlemen "engaged in the development and operation of an illicit aviation procurement network designed to evade the U.S. government's sanctions against Iran." Little wonder that Mahan is one of only four Iranian airlines that has passed international safety audits, despite being blocked from buying spare parts.
Mahan Air will remain blacklisted despite US sanctions being lifted across the Iranian airline sector, it has been since 2008 when the company imported three 747s into Iran without US authorization. Britain's Balli Group Plc later paid $2 million in criminal fines and $15 million in civil fines tied to the same charges.