In an escalation of its sanctions evasion strategy, Mahan Air, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-linked airline sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury since 2011, has acquired and smuggled into Iran five U.S.-manufactured Boeing 777-212ER wide-body passenger aircraft. The acquisition of these long-haul jets, formerly operated by Singapore Airlines, marks the largest illegal transfer of American-made aircraft to Iran since the imposition of U.S. secondary sanctions targeting Iran’s civil aviation sector in 2019.
The [smuggling] operation unfolded over a year and involved a network of front companies spanning four continents.
The operation unfolded over a year and involved a network of front companies spanning four continents. Originally stored in Alice Springs, Australia, after their 2020 retirement from Singapore Airlines’ fleet, Ion Aviation, a U.S.-registered entity, purchased the aircraft in 2023. Ion relocated them to Lanzhou, China between December 2023 and March 2024, and they then passed through Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta between May and July 2025, and Siem Reap, Cambodia, before their final arrival in Iran on July 15, 2025. Fake registration codes obtained by means of a Madagascar-based shell company allowed the aircraft smugglers to conceal their true ownership and destination.
Satellite imagery and eyewitness footage confirmed their arrival in Iran. One aircraft landed in Mashhad, while two others arrived at Zahedan International Airport and two more at Chabahar’s airport, normally used for logistics and military flights. All five aircraft had their temporary registrations removed within hours of arrival, and three of them had all visible markings concealed.
Mahan Air’s ability to operate these aircraft hinges on their engines. The Rolls-Royce Trent 884-17 turbofans powering the 777-212ERs share critical maintenance infrastructure with the Trent 772B-60 engines used on Iran Air’s Airbus A330s. Mahan’s engineering division already possesses the technical expertise and domestic repair capabilities needed to support the new aircraft. This makes the transition viable.
The smuggled 777s offer multiple advantages over Mahan’s aging Airbus A340-300 and A340-600 fleet. Their twin-engine configuration ensures greater fuel efficiency, longer range, and reduced maintenance costs. Mahan is expected to deploy them on high-capacity routes to China and Southeast Asia—markets where the airline has long-standing commercial and political connections. Alternatively, they could be leased to subsidiaries such as Yazd Airways, insulating Mahan from further sanctions exposure while bolstering Iranian long-haul capacity.
What makes this case particularly egregious is that it involves U.S.-made aircraft, acquired from a U.S.-based firm, smuggled using pathways the U.S. government has failed to disrupt. Indonesia has repeatedly facilitated Iranian sanctions evasion. Neither country faced penalties following the documented smuggling of Airbus aircraft in recent years. The pattern has emboldened Mahan Air to orchestrate one of its boldest acquisitions of sanctioned hardware yet.
If Washington is serious about preventing Iran from rebuilding a sanctions-busting airlift capability, then it must close these loopholes.
If Washington is serious about preventing Iran from rebuilding a sanctions-busting airlift capability, then it must close these loopholes. The U.S. Department of the Treasury should immediately sanction the front company of Mahan Air in Madagascar, as well as the Indonesian intermediaries that facilitated the transfer. Furthermore, the U.S. Department of State must apply pressure on jurisdictions that enable illicit registrations and allow smuggled aircraft to transit their airports.
The arrival of these five Boeing 777s is a geopolitical signal that illustrates the erosion of U.S. deterrence in critical regions and the growing impunity with which Iran’s aviation proxies operate. Without a coordinated response, Tehran will continue to acquire critical aviation assets and expand its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-aligned air fleet—one jet at a time.
