Iranian airlines were forced to cancel some international flights Wednesday after the U.S. tightened sanctions on Iran's aviation industry in a new effort to cripple its economy.
Separately, Tehran later Wednesday threatened to paralyze airports in neighboring countries if they cooperate with the U.S. by disrupting Iranian flights.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that all Iranian airlines would be forced to stop operating Wednesday by the threat of secondary sanctions on air services providers, seven months into the war between the U.S. and Iran.
A travel agent in Tehran told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that flights to Baghdad, Muscat, Qatar, Georgia and Azerbaijan had all been suspended, but routes to multiple other destinations remained available, including China.
The new U.S. measures came as part of an earlier threat by the Trump administration to impose "economic D-Day" on Iran in an attempt to force it into submission.
But Iran's aviation sector has already been a target of sanctions for years, and it remains unclear what the full impact will be and which other countries will comply.
Even after the new sanctions took effect Wednesday, a flight from Tehran operated by Mahan Air, one of Iran's biggest carriers, landed in Guangzhou in China, according to tracking data from FlightRadar24.
China said Tuesday that it opposed the U.S. sanctions, calling them illegal. A flight to Shanghai was also due to depart Wednesday, according to Tehran's international airport.
Some flights to Istanbul were also scheduled, though others had been canceled, the travel agent in Tehran told AFP.
"The situation is unstable and we are no longer selling tickets for the time being for fear of cancelations," the agent said, requesting anonymity.
A Mahan flight from Kabul was also expected to arrive in Tehran. According to the website for Tehran's international airport, other connections to Türkiye and Armenia remained possible using smaller Iranian airlines, including Varesh.
Flights to Najaf in Iraq and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) were also scheduled.
Bessent had vowed Monday to "shut down" Iranian carriers and punish anyone doing business with them.
"If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets or you will be knocked out of the dollar system," he warned other countries.
The restrictions will further complicate the ability of Iranians to travel abroad or return to their country.
If neighbouring countries cooperate with the U.S. by stopping Iranian flights, Iran will ensure their airports cannot function, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said Wednesday in an interview with state TV.
Iranian media also reported cancelations, with the Tasnim news agency Tuesday citing a civil aviation spokesperson as saying that Baghdad and Muscat airports "will no longer accept" Iranian flights.
The agency added that "other international flights, including Istanbul, will operate as scheduled."
According to Tasnim, Iran's aviation authorities were in talks to reroute Baghdad flights to Najaf, a major destination for Iranian pilgrims.
On Wednesday, the agency said its correspondent in Najaf had reported Iranian flights to the city were running as normal.
It quoted a source at the airport as saying no order had been received from Iraqi authorities to halt flights.
While the Iraqi government has not publicly announced plans to enforce the ban, several sources, including a senior government official, told AFP that Baghdad would comply with the U.S. measures.
The prospect of a suspension of flights between the two countries has sparked concerns among some Iraqi travel agents.
In Najaf, home to one of the most revered Shia Muslim shrines, agent Haidar Shamaa said "most travel companies in the city depend on booking flights" to Iranian airports.
Several travel agencies said panicked clients were calling for updates and were considering switching to land routes, which would mean much longer journeys.
