Iran Airbus Aircraft Impounded As a Result of Sanctions

[VIKING9]

and for the blind amongst us......
Iran Airbus Aircraft Impounded As a Result of Sanctions

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It looks like the latest sanctions on Iran Air are having a huge impact on Mahan Air's European operations.

The US Bureau of Industry and Security has recently claimed jurisdiction over one of Mahan Air's A310 due to the US origin components installed in the aircraft. As a result, the aircraft that had been scheduled to fly from Birmingham, UK to Tehran has now been grounded for the foreseeable future at Birmingham airport.

The following is an excerpt outlining the action taken by the US Bureau of Industry and Security against Mahan Air's A310 aircraft:

From: http://www.exportlawblog.com/archives/3238


"BIS has now added Paris-based Zarand Aviation to the TDO based on a lease of an Airbus 310 by Zarand to Mahan. The Airbus 310 in question is now grounded for the forseeable future at the Birmingham Airport in the United Kingdom. Although the aircraft was manufactured in and exported from France, BIS claims jurisdiction over the aircraft because it has U.S.-origin G.E. engines which are classified as ECCN 9A991.d and which constitute more than 10 percent of the value of the aircraft. Information on the leased 310-304 can be found here, including confirmation that the aircraft has two GE CF6-80C2A2 engines.

A Google search for Zarand Aviation suggests that it has little other business activity than the Mahan lease in question. The major effect, then, of this TDO will be to keep the aircraft grounded in the United Kingdom.

Mahan is supposed to have eight Airbus aircraft in its fleet."

Does this now mean that all Iranian owned airbus aircraft can be grounded at will by the US authorities as a result of their US origin components? If so, this is likely to have a devastating effect on the routes of the Iranian Airbus operators like Iran Air and Mahan Air. US origin components constitute more than the critical 10% value threshold in practically all Airbus aircraft, so in theory therefore it would seem that the entire Airbus fleets of Mahan Air and Iran Air are at risk of being grounded by the US authorities. Very worrying....