Turkish airlines suspend Iran flights until March 2027; Mahan Air's Istanbul and Ankara services cut on 21 September

Following a notice from Türkiye's Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Mahan Air operated its last flights on the Tehran–Istanbul and Tehran–Ankara routes on 20 September 2026; services were cancelled from 21 September until further notice. In the same period the company halted its Oman flights from 17 September and its Georgia flights from 21 September. The decision is linked to the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control adding 27 Iranian airlines not yet under sanctions to its list on 8 September; Mahan Air has been on the US sanctions list since 2011.

In an interview with CNBC on 21 September, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said all Iranian airlines would be shut down worldwide from 23 September: airports and companies providing fuel, landing services or ticket sales to Iranian aircraft face the risk of being cut off from the dollar system. As part of the same campaign, Türkiye-based Golden Global Investment Bank had earlier been added to the sanctions list. According to a report published on 22 September, Iran flights by Turkish Airlines, Pegasus and AJet are suspended until March 2027; according to State Airports Authority data, more than 50 flights a day operated on Iran routes in 2024.

The picture is not fully closed. According to Iranian state media outlet Tasnim, flights from Tehran to Baghdad and Muscat were cancelled from 23 September while Istanbul flights continued. According to Al Jazeera, state-owned Iran Air flies mainly to Iraqi cities and Istanbul, and Qeshm Air to Türkiye. Whether Turkish authorities have taken a written decision on Iranian carriers other than Mahan Air could not be independently verified.