One Year After Plane Downed, Victims' Governments Demand Justice from Iran

Canada and other nations whose citizens died in Iran's downing of a Ukrainian jetliner one year ago on Friday called on Tehran to come clean about the tragedy and "deliver justice" for the victims' families.

"We urgently call on Iran to provide a complete and thorough explanation of the events and decisions that led to this appalling plane crash," the coordination and response group made up of Canada, Britain, Ukraine, Sweden and Afghanistan said in a statement.

They also said they "will hold Iran to account to deliver justice and make sure Iran makes full reparations to the families of the victims and affected countries."

In Toronto, in Canada's Ontario province, nearly 200 people gathered under cloudy skies Friday afternoon in front of the University of Toronto before holding a march in honor of the crash victims, according to an AFP photographer at the scene.

Many people carried signs depicting the victims' photos and names. Other people wore black face masks printed with the word "Justice."

Among the marchers was Hamid Niazi, who lost his wife, daughter and son in the crash.

"I am not sure how I can explain that, I am still in (a) state of denial and disbelief. I can't believe that that happened to my family," he told AFP.

"Sometimes I think I am having a nightmare, that this couldn't happen."

In Kiev, where the doomed plane was bound, wreaths of flowers were laid on the site of a future memorial dedicated to the victims. A giant screen showed photos of the passengers and crew members.

'Thorough, Transparent and Credible Investigation'

At the end of December, Iran offered to pay US$150,000 to each of the families of the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, acknowledging that its forces had mistakenly shot it down on January 8, 2020, killing all 176 people on board, including 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

On Thursday, Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne rejected the offer, saying: "The issue of compensation will not be set through unilateral statements by Iran but rather be subject to state-to-state negotiations."

In a separate statement on Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau once again demanded from Iran a "thorough, transparent and credible investigation into the cause of this tragedy."

He also vowed "to hold Iran accountable, including by ensuring that Iran makes full reparations for the victims of PS752 and their grieving families, and to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice."

In mid-December, Canada's special counsel into the tragedy, former minister Ralph Goodale, issued a 70-page report arguing that Iran should not be "investigating itself" over the matter, emphasizing that many of the key details surrounding the crash remained unknown.

Trudeau, Champagne and several other members of the government spoke with victims' families on Thursday during a private virtual commemoration.

The prime minister also recently announced that January 8 would become known as Canada's National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Air Disasters.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Vows to Reveal 'Detailed' Data on Plane Probe: Kiev

Ukraine said on Wednesday that Iran promised to reveal "detailed" information on the probe into a Kiev-bound passenger plane mistakenly shot down in January, after a fresh round of talks in Tehran.

Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed shortly after taking off from the Iranian capital's main airport on January 8. 

The Islamic republic admitted days later that its forces accidentally shot down the plane, killing all 176 people on board, after firing two missiles amid heightened US-Iran tensions.

After a second round of talks between Iran and Ukraine in Tehran, the parties reached an agreement that within a week Kiev "will receive detailed information on the investigation" conducted by Iran, said a statement from the office of Ukraine's attorney general.

The information to be provided will include "documentary evidence of the detention of six people who are suspected of shooting down the plane," it added.

It said that, by the end of October, Iran has also promised to send to Ukraine a key piece of evidence -- the flight deck of the crew which was found in the first days after the disaster.

Gunduz Mamedov, Ukraine's deputy attorney general, vowed in the statement that Kiev would not accept Iran withholding any information on the grounds it was a "state secret".

Iran's civil aviation authority has said the misalignment of an air defence unit's radar system was the key "human error" that led to the plane's downing.

On Tuesday, Iranian state news agency IRNA quoted country's deputy foreign minister, Mohsen Baharvand, as saying that discussions were "good and constructive", and Iran is looking for "fair" solutions.

The first round of negotiations were held in Kiev in July, with the Ukrainian authorities saying they were "cautiously optimistic" about the process.

The talks are aimed at determining the precise chain of events and, ultimately, the amount of compensation that should be paid by Tehran.

Canada, which lost 55 nationals and 30 permanent residents in the crash, is watching the talks closely.

Ottawa in August said it was demanding answers from Iran after Tehran's "limited" initial report failed to explain why it fired missiles at the plane.

Photo: IRNA

Iran and Ukraine Open New Talks Over Downed Plane

Iran hosted officials from Ukraine in a second round of talks on Monday over compensation for a Kiev bound passenger plane mistakenly shot down in January, state media reported.

Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed shortly after taking off from the Iranian capital's main airport on January 8. 

Iran admitted days later that its forces accidentally shot down the plane, killing all 176 people on board, after firing two missiles amid heightened US-Iran tensions.

State news agency IRNA said the talks were held at the foreign ministry in Tehran and that they would continue until Wednesday.

The first round of negotiations were held in Kiev in July, with the Ukrainian authorities saying they were "cautiously optimistic" about the process.

Ukrainian deputy foreign minister Yevgeniy Yenin, who headed the delegation, met with  Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Tuesday, after meeting with his deputy Mohsen Baharvand earlier in the day.

Zarif called the first round of talks held in Kiev "positive and constructive" and hoped that those in Tehran achieve their desired results, according to a statement by his ministry.

Yenin welcomed "Iran's decision to take full responsibility for bringing down the Ukrainian plane and its readiness to ensure the same compensation for all the relatives of the victims, regardless of their citizenship," said a separate statement by Ukraine's foreign ministry.

Yenin also emphasised the "need for an unbiased and objective investigation of the circumstances of the air disaster and called on the Iranian side to ensure access" to all of its elements, the statement added.

Canada, which lost 55 nationals and 30 permanent residents in the crash, on Monday reaffirmed its commitment to "work tirelessly so that the families of the victims can get the answers they deserve."

Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne "is actively working with his international partners to ensure a thorough and credible investigation," his spokeswoman Syrine Khoury said on Monday.

Canada announced at the beginning of October it would form its own forensic team led by a former deputy spy chief to examine the evidence in the tragedy and advise the government accordingly.

Iran's civil aviation authority has said the misalignment of an air defence unit's radar system was the key "human error" that led to the plane's downing.

Tehran's air defences had been on high alert at the time in case the US retaliated against Iranian strikes hours earlier on American troops stationed in Iraq.

Photo: IRNA

US Blacklists UAE Firms for Supporting Iran Airline

By Giuseppe Cacace

The US Treasury placed two United Arab Emirates-based companies on its sanctions blacklist Wednesday for their support of Iran's already-sanctioned Mahan Air.

UAE-based Parthia Cargo and Delta Parts Supply FZC "have provided key parts and logistics services for Mahan Air," the Treasury said.

The two companies were involved in obtaining spare parts and materials for US-made jets that Mahan operates—sanctions block Iran from freely acquiring those parts. 

Mahan, one of Iran's leading carriers, has been blacklisted under US counterterrorism regulations for its close relationship with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, which Washington says carries out terror activities in the Middle East.

Mahan Air especially has been used by the Revolutionary Guards to support the regimes of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, according to the Treasury.

"The Iranian regime uses Mahan Air as a tool to spread its destabilizing agenda around the world, including to the corrupt regimes in Syria and Venezuela, as well as terrorist groups throughout the Middle East," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in a statement.

"The United States will continue to take action against those supporting this airline."

The Treasury also placed sanctions on UAE-based Iranian national Amin Mahdavi, who the Treasury said either owns or controls Parthia Cargo.

The sanctions aim at blocking those targeted from accessing global financial and commercial networks by forbidding anyone from trading with them.

In a parallel move, the US Justice Department filed criminal charges in federal court in Washington against Mahdavi and Parthia for "participating in a criminal conspiracy to violate US export laws and sanctions against Iran."

Photo: Wikicommons

Emirates Resumes Iran Flights After Five-Month Break

Dubai-based Emirates airlines resumed flights to the Iranian capital on Friday after a five-month break due to shutdowns to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Iran, the worst-hit country in the Middle East, has been scrambling to contain the pandemic since it reported its first two COVID-19 deaths in February.

Neighboring countries imposed travel curbs and strict quarantine measures after the first cases of their own days later, mostly in travelers with links to Iran.

The 16 passengers on the Emirates flight from Dubai passed through a disinfection tunnel and had their body temperature checked upon arrival at Tehran's airport.

In the departures lounge, masked outgoing passengers lined up at the Emirates check-in counter while an airport worker disinfected dozens of luggage trolleys.

The United Arab Emirates was among a list of countries that suspended all air links with Iran in February, along with nearby Armenia, Iraq, Kuwait and Turkey.

The UAE, of which Dubai is a member, is a key international transit route for Iranians and had daily flights to Iran.

"My colleagues and I screened the passengers for symptoms with interviews and we also have thermal sensors," said Nadia Piri, one of the airport's resident doctors.

Passengers had to fill in forms on arrival, Piri said, and would have to self-isolate for 14 days.

Airport deputy head Mohammadreza Karimian said a number of airlines have asked to resume flights to Iran.

"Different airlines have made requests, considering that we observe all health protocols throughly," he said, without naming them.

Photo: Wikicommons

Iran Asks France to Analyze Ukraine Flight Black Boxes

Iran has asked France to decrypt the black boxes from downed Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, sources close to the investigation said Friday.

The Iranian envoy to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in Montreal said the Islamic Republic had enlisted the help of France's BEA air accident agency to download and read the data on the flight recorder, the sources said.

BEA denied to AFP that it had been asked—but added that it was "ready to look at any request" from Iran.

Iran has admitted that it mistakenly shot down the Kiev-bound jetliner on January 8, killing 176 people.

The disaster unfolded as Iran's defenses were on high alert in case the US retaliated against Iranian strikes hours earlier on American troops stationed in Iraq -- which were themselves in response to the US assassination of a top Iranian commander.

The black boxes are expected to contain information about the last moments before the aircraft was struck by a ground-to-air missile and crashed, shortly after taking off from the Tehran airport.

Many of the passengers were Canadians.

For months, Ottawa has been calling on Iran, which does not have the technical capabilities to extract the fight data, to hand over the black boxes to Ukraine or France for analysis.

The Iranian official news agency IRNA reaffirmed at the beginning of June that authorities were prepared to do so, but warned that the badly damaged devices may not advance the investigation.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Agrees to Hand Over Downed Jet's Black Boxes to Ukraine

Iran pledged Wednesday at a meeting of UN civil aviation agency to hand over black boxes from downed Flight 752 to Ukraine or France for analysis—a move welcomed by Canada and Ukraine.

Iran's representative at the International Civil Aviation Organization in Montreal, Farhad Parvaresh, said the devices would be sent to Kiev, sources confirmed to AFP.

They are expected to contain information about the last moments before the Ukraine International Airlines jetliner was struck by a missile and crashed shortly after taking off from the Tehran airport on January 8.

In Ottawa, Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne "welcomed" Iran's commitment to finally share the black boxes, saying this was "a step in the right direction by Iran."

"I take Iran at their word," he said, "but I would rather judge their actions once the black boxes are in Europe and we have our own experts who have been able to analyze (them)."

Ukraine's ambassador to Canada, Andriy Schevchenko, in a tweet said his country also "welcomes Iran's decision" to hand them over, adding that "if additional expertise is needed," the flight data recorders would be forwarded to France for analysis.

Iran has admitted that the two black boxes were damaged and that it lacked the technical ability to extract data from them, but for two months it has waffled about what to do with them.

Countries whose citizens died in the disaster -- which included mostly Iranians but also Afghans, Britons, Canadians, Swedes and Ukrainians -- had criticised Iran's refusal to hand the plane's black boxes to Ukraine or one of the few countries capable of recovering and analysing the data they contain.

Canada repeatedly asked Iran to hand the plane's black boxes over to Ukraine or France for expert analysis.

At the ICAO meeting, Canadian Transportation Minister Marc Garneau stepped up the pressure, saying: "We cannot learn from the tragic shoot-down of PS752 unless all the facts are known and analysed.

"Two months after the fact, we should all be increasingly concerned with Iran's failure to arrange for the readout of the flight recorders despite repeated requests," he said, according to his speaking notes.

"Iran must act now to arrange the readout of the flight recorders as a demonstration of continued willingness to provide a full and transparent account of this event that is consistent with their international obligations. Canadians and the international community simply cannot wait any longer."

The ICAO also pressed the Islamic republic "to conduct the accident investigation in a timely manner" in compliance with international accident investigation provisions.

The disaster unfolded as Iran's defences were on high alert in case the US retaliated to Iranian strikes hours earlier on American troops stationed in Iraq -- which were themselves in response to the US assassination of a top Iranian commander.

In the immediate aftermath, Iranian civilian authorities insisted the crash was likely caused by a technical malfunction, vehemently denying claims the plane was shot down.

But in the early hours of January 11, the Iranian military admitted that the plane was shot down due to "human error," killing 176 people.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Air Says Resuming Flights to Europe

Iran Air said Tuesday it would resume flights to Europe, lifting a two-day suspension apparently linked to a ban on the carrier's planes entering European airspace.

"All flights will be resumed except to Vienna, Stockholm and Gothenburg, which have stopped flights due to the coronavirus outbreak," it said in a statement.

The national carrier had suspended flights to Europe on Sunday, citing European "restrictions" imposed for "unknown reasons", without mentioning the novel coronavirus epidemic.

The announcement came as Iran's health ministry reported 54 new deaths from COVID-19, the highest toll within 24 hours since the start of the outbreak in the country.

According to several specialized sites, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on February banned some Iran Air aircraft from European airspace.

The ban covered an Airbus A321-200 and two Airbus A330-200 planes that had not undergone necessary software upgrades for authorization to fly in Europe.

The flight resumption announcement came after talks by the Iran Civil Aviation Organisation and the foreign ministry with European officials, Iran Air's statement said.

The carrier, whose fleet was hit by US sanctions reimposed after Washington quit a nuclear deal with Iran, operates flights to multiple European destinations including Paris, London, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Frankfurt, Vienna and Rome.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Air Says Suspending Europe Flights

Iran Air on Sunday announced the suspension of all its flights to Europe until further notice, a decision apparently linked to a ban on the carrier's planes from entering European airspace.

The statement issued by the company made no mention of the novel coronavirus epidemic as a cause, citing only "restrictions" imposed by European authorities for "unknown reasons.”

The announcement came as Iran's health ministry reported 49 new deaths from COVID-19, the highest toll within 24 hours since the start of the outbreak in the country.

According to several specialized sites, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on February 3 banned Iran Air aircraft from European airspace.

The ban covered an Airbus A321-200 and two Airbus A330-200 planes that had not undergone necessary upgrades for authorization to fly in Europe.

On March 2, however, Sweden announced it was temporarily suspending Iran Air flights on the advice of health officials who said Tehran was "not in control" of the coronavirus outbreak on its soil.

The carrier, whose fleet is hit by US sanctions reimposed after Washington quit a nuclear deal with Iran, operates flights to multiple European destinations including Paris, London, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Frankfurt, Vienna and Rome.

Photo: IRNA

Iran Airliner Overshoots Runway, Stops in Highway

An Iranian passenger plane overshot a runway as it landed Monday in the southwestern city of Bandar-e Mahshahr, barreling into an adjacent highway without causing casualties, state TV reported.

"Arriving at Mahshahr airport, the pilot landed the aircraft too late and this caused him to miss the runway," the broadcaster quoted the head of Khuzestan province's aviation authority as saying.

This "caused the aircraft to overshoot the runway and stop in a boulevard" next to the airport, Mohammadreza Rezaeia said.

The McDonnell Douglas jet, belonging to Iran's Caspian Airlines, was flying from Tehran's Mehrabad Airport with 135 passengers plus the plane's crew.

State TV reported that all were safe.

A state TV reporter travelling on the plane told the broadcaster that the aircraft's "back wheel had broken off, as we saw it was left on the runway" and said the plane had been moving with no wheels before it ground to a halt.

Iran's aviation authority said "the cause of the incident is being investigated".

The Islamic republic had been planning to upgrade its decrepit fleet after long-standing US sanctions were lifted following the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

But when US President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord in 2018 and reimposed crippling economic sanctions, the treasury department revoked licenses for Boeing and Airbus to sell passenger jets to Iran.

Photo: IRNA

Canada Demands Cooperation in Iran Crash Ahead of International Meeting

Canada vowed Wednesday to get to the bottom of the plane crash that killed dozens of its nationals in Iran, ahead of a meeting in London with other countries that lost citizens.

Foreign ministers from Canada, Ukraine, Sweden, Afghanistan and Britain—which all had nationals who died—are scheduled to meet on Thursday to press for "full cooperation from Iranian authorities," Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau told a press conference.

"Canada will not accept a situation where we feel that we're not being given the information that we're looking for," he said.

"Make no mistake about it, Canada is going to get to the very bottom of this."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that his government intends to ask Tehran for compensation for the families of Canadian victims, which Ottawa officials said Wednesday was a top priority.

The Ukraine International Airlines flight was shot down by Iran in a catastrophic error shortly after taking off from Tehran last week, killing all 176 passengers and crew on board.

According to Ottawa, 57 of the victims were Canadian.

"Our first priority at this time is supporting the families and friends of the 57 Canadians who lost their lives in this tragedy," Garneau said.

"While we cannot bring back their loved ones, we can make sure that they receive compensation to help them navigate this difficult time."

Asked if Ottawa might provide monies to the victims' families and seek reimbursement from Iran later in order to fast-track what could otherwise be a lengthy process, Trudeau's parliament secretary Omar Alghabra said: "We are actively exploring these options and we hope to have a resolution in short order."

Iran has invited Canada's Transportation Safety Board to participate in its investigation, including the download and analysis of the black boxes.

Garneau said Iran has indicated it wishes to cooperate, noting that two Canadian investigators were due to examine the wreckage at Tehran's invitation.

But he added that he would like Iran, as lead investigator, to formalize Canada's involvement in the probe as an "accredited representative" to ensure access.

A week after the crash, Canadian universities observed a minute of silence in tribute to the victims, which included academics and students.

Photo: IRNA

Lufthansa Scraps Tehran Flights Until Jan 20

Lufthansa on Friday said it was canceling all flights to and from Tehran until January 20, following suggestions that Iran may have mistakenly shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane earlier this week.

The German group, which also owns Austrian Airlines, said the flight ban was "due to the unclear security situation for the airspace around Tehran airport.”

All 176 people on board died when the Ukrainian International Airlines plane went down near Tehran on Wednesday, shortly after Iran launched missiles at US forces in Iraq over the killing of a top Iranian general.

American, British and Canadian officials say intelligence sources indicate Iran shot down the plane, perhaps unintentionally, but this has been denied by Tehran.

Several airlines had already announced they would avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace as tensions in the region soared.

A Lufthansa flight between Frankfurt and Tehran on Thursday turned back an hour after takeoff because of security concerns.

Austrian Airlines meanwhile said late Thursday that its flight to Tehran that day was ordered to return to Vienna after a stopover in Sofia.

Photo: Wikicommons

Iran May Seek U.S. Help in Jet-Crash Probe Through UN Treaty

By Alan Levin

Iran has invoked an international agreement to get assistance from foreign investigators—including from the U.S.—in the investigation of Wednesday’s fiery crash of a jetliner near Tehran, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Such a move is common in aviation disasters, and gives the country where the plane was produced the ability to participate. The plane that crashed was a U.S.-built Boeing Co. 737-800.

However, American agencies including the National Transportation Safety Board are weighing whether it is legal to engage with Iranian authorities under the terms of sanctions the U.S. has imposed on Iran. Moreover, they are concerned about the safety of sending people there given the confrontation between the two countries that has led to military strikes on both sides, the people said.

The probe into Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 -- which plunged from the sky minutes after takeoff, killing all 176 people aboard -- is fraught with difficulty and intrigue.

The crash came hours after an Iranian missile attack on two Iraqi military bases in retaliation for an American drone attack last week that killed one of Iran’s top generals. American forces are stationed at both bases.

Under the United Nation’s International Civil Aviation Organization, crash investigations are conducted by the nation in which they occur. In addition, the country where the plane and key components are manufactured are allowed to take part.

Iran notified the UN agency of the accident in the hours after it occurred, according to the people, who were briefed on the matter but weren’t authorized to speak about it and asked not to be named.

The NTSB routinely participates in dozens of crash investigations around the world under the ICAO process, known as Annex 13.

By notifying the ICAO, Iran suggested it might be open to U.S. help in the probe, said the two people. But the Islamic Republic has sent mixed signals, with some officials being quoted as saying they would not allow Americans to analyze the plane’s two crash-proof flight recorders, for example.

American law also prohibits the NTSB from working in Iran because of longstanding bans on conducting business in that country. The NTSB has occasionally assisted in accident investigations there, but had to obtain special permission from the U.S. Treasury. The process of obtaining such approval has at times taken more than a year.

“The NTSB is monitoring developments surrounding the crash of Ukraine International flight 752 and is following its standard procedures for international aviation accident investigations, including long-standing restrictions under the country embargoes,” the agency said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

“As part of its usual procedures, the NTSB is working with the State Department and other agencies to determine the best course of action.”

The State Department issued a statement offering assistance to Ukraine, but notably didn’t mention helping Iran. “The United States calls for complete cooperation with any investigation into the cause of the crash,” the department said.

The aircraft climbed normally until it reached an altitude of 7,900 feet (2,408 meters), then suddenly stopped transmitting its position, according to data from the tracking site FlightRadar24.

The jetliner was equipped with a device that communicated with the airline and it also showed the plane was behaving normally until it stopped transmitting at about the same time, said a person familiar with the data.

The airline said in a statement that the investigation would include representatives of Iran, Boeing, the airline and the National Bureau of Air Accidents Investigation of Ukraine.

Boeing said in a statement “we are ready to assist in any way needed.”

Photo: IRNA

Ukraine Passenger Jet Crashes in Iran, Killing at Least 170

By David Vujanovic and Ania Tsoukanova

A Ukrainian airliner carrying 176 passengers crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday, killing all on board, officials in Iran said. The Boeing 737 had departed Imam Khomeini International Airport before dawn bound for the Ukrainian capital Kiev, semi-official news agency ISNA said.

It slammed into farmland at Khalaj Abad, in Shahriar county, about 45 kilometres northwest of the airport, according to reports on state media.

"Obviously it is impossible that passengers" on flight PS-752 are alive, Red Crescent head Morteza Salimi told semi-official news agency ISNA.

"Out of the 176 people who died, nine were flight crew members and the others passengers," Mohammad Taghizadeh, the deputy governor for Tehran province, told ISNA. Seventy were men, 81 women and 15 children, he said.

"There are currently 500 medical units on the scene" gathering bodies, he added. Emergency services spokesman Mojtaba Khaledi said the vast majority of the dead were Iranian citizens.

Just two passengers and nine crew members were Ukrainian, according to Ukraine's national security council, which is overseeing a crisis team. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed all those on board the plane were killed.

The aircraft was carrying 82 Iranian and 63 Canadian nationals, a Ukrainian minister said. The Boeing 737 was also carrying 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, four Afghans, three Germans and three Britons, Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko wrote on Twitter.

"According to preliminary data, all passengers and crew members are dead," he wrote on Facebook.

The Red Crescent said teams were being assisted by soldiers and firefighters in the effort to recover bodies.

"After six o'clock (0230 GMT) this morning we were informed that a passenger plane crashed in the vicinity of Shahriar," said Shahin Fathi, the head of its search and rescue unit.

"All operational teams were dispatched to the area," he told state television. "Unfortunately... we haven't found anyone alive."

The crash was likely to have been caused by "technical difficulties", Press TV said, quoting Ali Khashani, spokesman for Imam Khomeini International Airport.

The Ukrainian airline whose plane crashed outside Tehran on Wednesday, killing over 170 people, said the Boeing 737 was built in 2016 and checked only two days before the accident.

"The plane was manufactured in 2016, it was received by the airline directly from the (Boeing) factory. The plane underwent its last planned technical maintenance on January 6, 2020," Ukraine International Airlines said in a statement.

"The plane caught fire after crashing," said Press TV, state television's English-language news broadcaster.

A video aired by the state broadcaster appeared to show the plane already on fire, falling from the night sky.

American airline manufacturer Boeing tweeted: "We are aware of the media reports out of Iran and we are gathering more information." The Ukrainian president warned against speculation about the causes of the crash.

"I ask everyone to keep from speculating and putting forth unconfirmed theories about the crash," Zelensky he wrote on Facebook, as he cut short a vacation in Oman and flew back to Ukraine.

Aviation expert Stephen Wright said he doubted the airliner had been downed by an Iranian missile but said the evidence suggested something "catastrophic" had taken place.

"There is a lot of speculation at the moment it has been shot down - I think that is not going to be the case at all," he said. "The aircraft was climbing... it was going up in the right direction, which means that something catastrophic has happened.

"It could be a bomb or it could be some sort of catastrophic breakup of the aircraft." Wright, a professor of aircraft systems at Tampere University in Finland, said the aircraft was quite new and not one of the the MAX models fitted with anti-stall systems that have been linked with two other recent crashes.

The crash came shortly after Iran said it fired missiles at Iraqi bases in revenge for the killing of one of the Islamic republic's top military commanders in a US drone strike on Friday.

Following the missile strikes, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was banning US-registered carriers from flying over Iraq, Iran and the Gulf after rocket attacks on US forces in Iraq.

"The (FAA) issues Notices to Airmen tonight outlining flight restrictions that prohibit US civil aviation operators from operating in the airspace over Iraq, Iran and the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman," it said in a statement.

"The FAA will continue closely monitoring events in the Middle East." Iran launched the missiles after a US drone strike killed Qasem Soleimani, a hugely popular figure who headed the foreign operations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed "severe revenge" for the assassination and declared three days of mourning following the assassination which shocked the Islamic republic.

The assassination of Soleimani set off an escalating war of words between Iran and the US.

In Tehran, President Hassan Rouhani on Monday warned Trump to "never threaten" Iran, after the US leader issued a US strike list of 52 targets in the Islamic republic.

Photo: IRNA

Airlines Halt Hormuz Flights Amid US-Iran Crisis

By Jitendra Joshi

Some of the world's leading carriers including British Airways, Qantas and Singapore Airlines on Friday suspended flights over the Strait of Hormuz, as Iran-US tensions flare over the downing of a drone.

The suspensions will affect many thousands of passengers and came after the Federal Aviation Administration in the United States issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), "prohibiting US-registered aircraft from operating over the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman".

The NOTAM was in response to "heightened military activities and increased political tensions that might place commercial flights at risk", an FAA statement said, as Tehran and Washington engaged in a war of words over Thursday's missile strike on the drone.

The FAA's notice applies only to US-registered airlines, and United Airlines said it was suspending its Newark-Mumbai service in response. But European and Asian operators were taking no chances.

"Our safety and security team are constantly liaising with authorities—including the likes of the FAA -- around the world as part of their comprehensive risk assessment into every route we operate," a BA spokeswoman said.

Germany's Lufthansa and Dutch airline KLM followed suit in bypassing the Hormuz area, although Air France said it was already flying further south. Dubai-based Emirates said it had rerouted flights to avoid "areas of possible conflict.”

Iran's downing of the drone—which Washington insists was above international waters but Iran says was within its airspace—has seen tensions between the two countries spike further after a series of attacks on tanker ships blamed by the US on Tehran.

The Global Hawk surveillance aircraft can attain a maximum altitude of 60,000 feet (18.3 kilometres), nearly double the typical cruising height of a passenger plane.

KLM said: "The incident with the drone is reason not to fly over the Strait of Hormuz for the time being. This is a precautionary measure."

Pakistan Problem

The Netherlands is still reeling from the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014, which was hit a missile over eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region where pro-Russian separatist rebels are battling Ukraine government forces.

All 298 people on board were killed, 196 of them Dutch. International investigators on Wednesday charged three Russians and a Ukrainian with murder over the shooting down of the plane, which was
traveling between Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpur. The incident forced airlines on the busy Europe-Asia route to divert flights away from Ukraine airspace.

Responding to the latest tensions over Iran, Malaysia Airlines said it "is closely monitoring the situation and is guided by various assessments including security reports and NOTAMs by respective airspace control authorities".

Australia's flag carrier Qantas said it too was avoiding the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman "until further notice", while Singapore Airlines warned passengers that its flight times to Europe would likely take longer now. Europe-Asia flights have already faced disruption since February, when

Pakistan restricted large swathes of airspace near India due to cross-border air strikes which came close to all-out war between the nuclear-armed rivals.

"This (Pakistan's action) has also pushed much of the transiting traffic south, nearer to the area now prohibited to US carriers," the flight-tracking website Flightradar24 said in a blog.

Alex Macheras, an independent aviation analyst in London, said the Hormuz diversions were another image problem for Iran after the "mass exodus" of European airlines, which had to abandon their Tehran routes following the restoration of US sanctions.

Pointing back to the Ukraine downing, Pakistan's closure and other incidents, he told AFP that "more and more passengers have been affected by geopolitics", and that many travelers were avoiding stopovers in the Middle East altogether.

Photo: Wikicommons

Iran Air Appoints New US-Sanctioned CEO

Tehran has appointed a new CEO to head national airline Iran Air, state news reported, replacing its first female CEO with a US-blacklisted pilot.

Touraj Dehghani Zanganeh, a former air force commander who features on a US treasury sanctions list, was named for the post at a Sunday cabinet meeting.

He will replace Farzaneh Sharafbafi, the first Iranian woman to boast a PhD in aerospace, who led the airline for two years.

Zanganeh was previously CEO of Meraj Air, which was also sanctioned by the US early last year.

Individuals on the Specially Designated Nationals List are generally prohibited from having US bank accounts.

Americans can also face civil or criminal penalties for engaging in business dealings with them, according to the US treasury.

Iran Air had been planning to upgrade its aging fleet after long-standing US sanctions were lifted following the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

But when US President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord early last year and reimposed crippling economic sanctions, the treasury department revoked licenses for Boeing and Airbus to sell passenger jets to Iran.

Photo:

Australian Gets 2 Years in Jail for Iran Trade

An Australian man was sentenced to two years in prison in Washington Thursday for exporting restricted aviation equipment to Iranian buyers in violation of US restrictions.

Seven years after he was charged,  David Levick, 57, from Cherrybrook, Australia, was ordered to prison after pleading guilty to four counts of violating the US International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which places tight restrictions on sales of sensitive equipment to Iran.

The exports took place in 2007-2008. At the time Levick was general manager of ICM Components, Inc., located in Thornleigh, Australia.

US authorities say he ordered the restricted materials on behalf of an Iranian company for transshipment to Iran.

When he was first charged, US authorities accused Levick of selling Iran US components of missiles, drones and torpedoes.

But the Justice Department statement Thursday made no mention of those.

Instead, he admitted to selling "precision pressure transducers," sensor devices with many applications, including in the avionics industry.

He also sold the Iranians emergency flotation system kits and assemblies for mounting lights on aircraft.

Levick was extradited from Australia in December 2018.

Levick was also ordered to forfeit nearly USD 200,000, the value of the goods involved in the Iran deals.

Photo Credit: Wikicommons

Iran's Mahan Air Cancels Paris Flights Over 'Sanctions'

Iran's Mahan Air has been forced to cancel its Paris flights over "sanctions", its customer services team said Tuesday weeks after Germany banned the airline.

"We have been told that (flights to France) have been cancelled... as of the first of April," an operator at the airline's office in Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport told AFP.

The Paris schedule will be scrapped "because of sanctions" by the French, the source said by phone without elaborating.

Two of the airline's French customers in Iran were notified by email that their flights booked for next month were cancelled.

Mahan, the Islamic republic's second-largest carrier after Iran Air, flies up to four services a week between Tehran and Paris.

Germany imposed a ban on Mahan in January, which the foreign ministry said was necessary to protect Berlin's "foreign and security policy interests.”

That decision came amid broader sanctions adopted by the European Union against Tehran over attacks on opponents in the bloc. 

Iran has denied any involvement in the alleged plots and described Germany's move as "hasty and unjustifiable."

Mahan Air was blacklisted by the US in 2011, as Washington said the carrier was providing technical and material support to an elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards known as the Quds Force.

Photo Credit: Wikicommons

Iran Deplores 'Unjustifiable' German Banning of Mahan Air

Iran's foreign ministry on Tuesday deplored Germany's decision to ban Iranian airline Mahan air from its airports describing the move as "hasty and unjustifiable.”

"The rescinding of Mahan Air's flight permits to Germany is a hasty, unjustifiable act," the ministry said in a statement.

"This action is in conflict with the spirit governing the long-standing relations between the Iranian and German nations," and "contrary to the interests of bilateral relations, it said.

Iran said it hope Germany will reconsider its decision.

Germany said on Monday it had banned Mahan Air from its airports.

Germany foreign ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told reporters in Berlin the move was necessary to protect Germany's "foreign and security policy interests".

A spokeswoman at Germany's transport ministry said Iran had been informed that the ban would take effect from Monday and involve Mahan Air flights from and to Germany.

Mahan Air, Iran's second-largest carrier after Iran Air, flies four services a week between Tehran and the German cities of Dusseldorf and Munich.

The ban caused confusion and chaos for Mahan Air passengers as the airline rushed to secure replacement flights for them.

"I've been in the aviation industry for decades, and I've never seen such a thing" a Mahan Air employee from the company's Dusseldorf office told AFP in Tehran on Tuesday.

"It borders on cruelty for all of these passengers," he said on condition of anonymity, adding that staff had been fielding calls from distraught passengers all day long.

Mahan air was blacklisted by the US in 2011, as Washington said the carrier was providing technical and material support to an elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards known as the Quds Force.

Iran's aging air fleet has had a string of crashes in recent years mostly due to tough decades-long US sanctions hindering the purchase of new airplanes and critical spare parts for its civilian fleet.

Hopes for a change in the situation were dashed last May when Washington pulled out of a landmark 2015 deal over Iran's nuclear program, reimposing sanctions that had been lifted as part of the multilateral accord.

Photo Credit:

Germany Plans to Sanction Iran Airline

Germany said Monday it had banned Iranian airline Mahan Air from its airports, in an escalation of sanctions adopted by the European Union against Tehran over attacks on opponents in the bloc.

The move was necessary to protect Germany's "foreign and security policy interests", foreign ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told reporters at a regular Berlin press conference.

Officials at the Federal Aviation Office (LBA) sent Tehran-based Mahan Air a notification "ordering the immediate suspension of its authorization to operate passenger flights from and to Germany" from Monday, a transport ministry spokeswoman added.

Mahan, Iran's second-largest carrier after Iran Air, flies four services a week between Tehran and the German cities of Duesseldorf and Munich.

It was blacklisted by the US in 2011, as Washington said the carrier was providing technical and material support to an elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards known as the Quds Force.

The US treasury has threatened sanctions against countries and companies offering the airline's 31 aircraft landing rights or services such as on-board dining.

But Brussels and Washington have been at odds on how best to deal with Iran since President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from a 2015 deal lifting some sanctions in exchange for Tehran suspending its nuclear program.

'Destabilizing Activity'

Foreign ministry spokesman Burger reiterated that Germany wished to "uphold" the agreement "and play our part in keeping economic exchange with Iran possible".

"But we have always said that destabilizing activity by Iran in the (Middle East) region as well as Iran's ballistic missile program are unacceptable," he added.

"On top of that, there are recent indications regarding the activities of Iran's secret services within EU states."

The EU earlier this month targeted sanctions at Iran's security services and two of their leaders, accused of involvement in a series of murders and planned attacks against Tehran critics in the Netherlands, Denmark and France.

Brussels' measures included freezing funds and financial assets belonging to Iran's intelligence ministry and individual officials, but did not target any companies.

US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, a close Trump ally, welcomed Berlin's decision.

"Mahan Air has flown terrorists, weapons, equipment, and funds to international locations to support Iranian terrorist proxy groups," he said in a statement, adding that it had been used "to support the Assad regime in Syria."

Since his arrival, Grenell has exerted unusually intense pressure on German firms over Iran sanctions.

Rail operator Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Telekom, Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler and industrial group Siemens have all said they will stop their operations in the country.

Last week German authorities said they had arrested a German-Afghan military advisor on suspicion of spying for Iran.

Photo Credit: IRNA