BIS Renews Export Denial Order for Mahan Airways for 1 Year

The Commerce Department again renewed a temporary export denial order for Mahan Airways because the airline continues to violate the order and the Export Administration Regulations. Mahan Airways has been on the banned list since 2008, and Commerce in its Oct. 31 notice said the Iranian airline has continued flights between Iran and Iraq, Russia, China and Pakistan in violation of U.S. export controls. BIS also highlighted its "continued investigation" into Mahan’s recent acquisition of an Airbus A340 with Iranian tail number EP-MJA, which the agency said had flown between Tehran and Moscow as recently as Oct. 25.

BIS extended the denial order for one year from Oct. 31, a departure from the 180-day extensions the agency has previously announced for Mahan. The longer extension was "appropriate because Mahan Airways has engaged in a pattern of repeated, ongoing and/or continuous apparent violations" of the Export Administration Regulations, the agency said. The extension follows a change the agency announced in August that allows it to renew the orders for one year instead of the previous 180-day maximum (see 2308290029).