Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al-Nakhalah: We are the rightful owners, and we must fight to retrieve our rights
Al-Nakhalah: The enemy and its allies must know that we can never surrender to their terms and diktats after all the sacrifices made
Al-Nakhalah: The prisoner exchange clause can be completed in the next few days, and thus we will have pulled the [explosion] fuse and removed the enemy's justifications for aggression
Al-Nakhalah: The Resistance has expressed its willingness to negotiate on the basis that there are items that can be dealt with positively, the first of which is the prisoner exchange item
Al-Nakhalah: Trump's plan entails the Palestinian people's declaration of complete surrender to the enemy
PIJ Secretary-General, Ziyad al-Nakhalah, in an address aired on Al Mayadeen: The Resistance is engaging in a fierce negotiating battle under the so-called Trump plan
Russian Federation Council approves joint military cooperation agreement with Cuba
Al-Nunu: Today, the lists of prisoners required to be released, the agreed-upon criteria and numbers, were exchanged
Al-Nunu from Sharm el-Sheikh: Negotiations focused on mechanisms for implementing an end to the war, the withdrawal of occupation forces from the Gaza Strip, and the exchange of prisoners
Al-Nunu from Sharm el-Sheikh: Mediators are making great efforts to remove any obstacles in the way of implementing the ceasefire, and a sense of optimism now prevails among all parties

How US sanctions crippled Iran's aviation sector: FT

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The Financial Times
  • 21 May 2024 20:26
4 Min Read

Iran has been unable to update its fleet or get spare parts and maintenance contracts for years due to Western sanctions on Iranian institutions and export prohibitions on aerospace items.

Listen
  • x
  •   How sanctions played havoc with Iran’s ageing helicopters
    In this photo provided by Moj News Agency, rescue members work at the scene of a crash of a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Varzaghan in northern Iran on May 20, 2024 (AP)

It is still unclear what made the US-made Bell 212 helicopter carrying Iran's late president Ebrahim Raisi and foreign minister crash into a mountaintop near the Azerbaijan border on Sunday.

However, analysts and former officials believe Iran's need for spare parts for its air force due to US and Western sanctions may be to blame.

Earlier Today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the US aviation sanctions, including against Iran, and the ban on the supply of spare parts, of putting people at risk and harming ordinary citizens. 

Ali Ansari, founder of the Institute of Iranian Studies at the University of St Andrews told the Financial Times that Iran's air fleet is "old and should not be able to keep flying."

Iran has been unable to update its fleet or get spare parts and maintenance contracts for years due to Western sanctions on Iranian institutions and export prohibitions on aerospace items.

Civilian airliners in the country include a few Airbus A300s, which were no longer built more than a decade ago. Cirium, an aviation statistics organization, reports that the average age of operating planes in its passenger fleet is about 28 years, more than double the global average. Iran Air, the national airline, still operates an A300 that is approximately 40 years old.

Rob Morris, head of Cirium’s consultancy business Ascend, explains that the older the aircraft, the less reliable, detailing how "this is reflected in the average utilization, which at an average of 4.8 hours per day is around half the global average."

Some Western sanctions were removed after Iran accepted the 2015 nuclear agreement with international powers, and Tehran signed contracts worth more than $40 billion with Boeing and Airbus to renew its fleet.

Related News

Depleted by foreign wars, US seeks to re-arm for another confrontation

Trump's Federal crackdown continue: National Guard arrives in Chicago

However, that joy was short-lived as Donald Trump withdrew from the deal and slapped hundreds more sanctions. 

Carlos Cesnik, professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan explained that BELL 212 and 412 have good safety records, “But in any accident, operating conditions must be taken into account, with weather and maintenance being at the top of the list.” 

According to Cirium, Iran now operates 62 Bell helicopters, 13 of which are Bell 212 models. Open-source intelligence experts think the wrecked helicopter had the registration number 6-9207, indicating that it was handed to the Iranian Air Force as early as 1994.

According to Daniel Martin, a financial and trade sanctions partner at law firm HFW, replacement components for technical systems on the Bell helicopter would very probably have been subject to US, UK, and European export restrictions.

Cesnik noted that although helicopters are safer than cars, they are still less safe than planes according to the National Transportation Safety Board), they continue to be a crucial part of military travel in many nations.

In February, the United States National Guard temporarily grounded all of its helicopters following two crashes in a month. A navy helicopter crashed in Malaysia last month, killing ten crew members, and another tragedy killed Kenya's highest-ranking military commander.

Russian helicopters deployed by Colombia's military forces have also had several recent mishaps, most recently a deadly one that killed 9 soldiers. 

A helicopter carrying Iranian sports minister Hamid Sajjadi crashed last year while attempting to land on a football field. He survived, but his assistant died, and twelve people were injured. Five months later, a training plane crashed west of Iran, killing two.

Iran's former foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, blamed US sanctions for the latest disaster and Raisi's death. "These will be recorded in the list of America's crimes against the Iranian people," he declared.

  • United States
  • Iran
  • Sanctions on Iran
  • Ebrahim Raisi
  • Hossein Amir-Abdollahian

Most Read

Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
ap

'Israel' pays influencers $7K per post to whitewash Gaza genocide

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025
Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder revealed

Mossad’s secret role in Aldo Moro’s 1978 murder exposed

  • Politics
  • 5 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
In this May 20, 20201, photo Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, the head of US Central Command, arrives in Baghdad, Iraq (AP)
Politics

US spent $33 billion on post-Oct.7 genocide, wars, Brown Uni reports

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., holds a news conference to mark the seventh day of the government shutdown, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. (AP)
Politics

US troops face unpaid wages as government shutdown drags on

Mourners wave Hezbollah and a Palestinian flag during the funeral of Hezbollah former leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and his successor Sayyed Hashem Safieddine in the Sports City Stadium in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, February 23, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Hezbollah voices support for Gaza, Resistance on October 7 anniversary

Al-Aqsa Flood restored Palestinian cause on the global stage: Hamas
Politics

Al-Aqsa Flood restored Palestinian cause on the global stage: Hamas

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS