ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Arab Emirate’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) on Thursday announced the suspension of flights operated by Iranian airlines to its territory “until further notice,” according to state media, as the toll of US sanctions on Iran's aviation sector reverberates across the region.
The GCAA announced the suspension of flights from Iranian carriers “to and from the UAE, effective today, Thursday, 24th September, until further notice,” according to state-owned WAM agency, “in light of the US ban imposed on Iranian airlines from using airports in various countries around the world.”
Likewise, Iranian media also reported Thursday that all flights operated by Iranian airlines to the UAE were canceled “from midnight,” according to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), citing a spokesman for Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization.
Dubai serves as a major destination for Iranian carriers, with multiple daily flights, and boasts a large Iranian community as well as prominent commercial ties.
The decision comes as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declared on Monday the global shutdown of all Iranian airlines on Wednesday, warning that "enablers" who provide fuel, landing services or tickets will be “knocked out of the dollar system.”
The US in late August levied a sweeping sanctions package against Iran, dubbed Operation Economic Outcast, aimed at targeting Tehran’s illicit revenue streams.
As part of the campaign, the US in September targeted “all remaining Iranian airlines,” naming 36 entities - including 27 active carriers, most of which operate domestic routes - to curtail carrier activity “supporting Iran's aviation sector, which the regime uses to move weapons, personnel, and illicit cargo," including "covert front companies, foreign intermediaries."
Iran Air, the national carrier, and Mahan Air, a private company, as the two main providers operating international routes - serve as the sole carriers allowing passengers to leave Iran via air.
While the sanctions do not explicitly bar Iranian carriers from using airspace, landing services - which entail provision of landing strip, gate services, refueling, cargo offloading, aircraft servicing, and passenger processing - are strictly prohibited.
In that context, a Tehran-Dushanbe flight was forced to return to Iran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport after Turkmenistan barred Iranian airlines permission to use its airspace, Majid Akhavan, the spokesperson for Iran's Civil Aviation Organization confirmed on Thursday, according to ISNA.
Of note, Iranian authorities announced the suspension of flights to Baghdad starting from Tuesday, with the state-run Iraqi News Agency on Wednesday citing privately-owned service handlers' refusal “to provide services to Iranian airlines for fear of facing sanctions."
While Tasnim news agency, affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), indicated the rerouting of Iraqi flights to its Shiite holy city of Najaf - and Najaf airport stating it had received “no directive” to halt Iranian flights on Wednesday - Najaf Airport announced on Friday that "incoming and outgoing flights from Iran have been canceled as of 2 a.m. on Friday, October 25," according to Iranian outlet, Entekhab.
Since the outbreak of the war on February 28, the IRGC has fired more than 3,000 drones and missiles at UAE.
Related: UAE returns 200 trucks of Iranian agricultural produce as sanctions tighten
