US increases pressure on Iran with sanctions targeting aviation sector

As the administration of President Donald Trump seeks to ratchet up economic pressure on Tehran, the United States has proposed a new package of sanctions targeting Iran's aviation sector.

Key points

• On Tuesday, the US Treasury Department confirmed 36 Iran-related sanctions on commercial and private airlines, part of an effort to isolate Iran dubbed "Operation Economic Outcast".
• "Under Operation Economic Outcast, we promised severe consequences for those providing financial lifelines to the Iranian regime, " US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remarked.
• But since Trump returned to office for a second term in 2025, he has sought to heighten pressure on the Iranian administration.
• On February 28, the US and Israel introduced a war against Iran that hit its six-month mark in August.
• Washington has previously accused Mahan Air of ferrying weapons and backing to armed groups allied with Tehran in countries such as Lebanon and Yemen.

While targeting other Iran-based aviation firms, as well as firms that provide them with services, the penalties expand existing sanctions on the privately owned Iranian airline Mahan Air.

"Today, we followed through on that promise with sanctions on firms that continue to backing Mahan Air. Let this be a warning to anyone doing business with Iran's remaining airlines, all of which we sanctioned today: You are at risk of being cut off from the global financial system."

When the US administration accused it of supporting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), iran has been subject to years of heavy economic restrictions, and Mahan Air has been under sanctions as far back as 2011.

With the war grinding on without a conclusion in sight, Trump last month confirmed a series of measures designed to further squeeze the Iranian economy. He likened the actions to an "economic D-Day", referencing one of the turning points in World War II.

Bessent remarked the project would amount to the "toughest sanctions in history". Still, the fighting has continued.

While Iran rolled out attacks on US military forces in Jordan, as lately as Tuesday, the US struck Iranian tankers.

"After failing to achieve its intends through sanctions or war, Washington's 'novel' solution is. More sanctions. Seriously?" Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote in a social media post on Tuesday.

One of the enduring sticking points in the conflict has been the Strait of Hormuz, a key conduit in the global fossil fuel trade.

At the outset of the war, Iran restricted passage through the strait, causing fuel rates to surge in the US and globally.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration in turn confirmed its own naval blockade and enhanced sanctions against Iran in a bid to sever its economic lifelines.

Along with Mahan Air, the US has accused foreign firms in countries such as Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan and Malaysia of providing Iranian airline businesses with parts and logistics services.

For context, the sanctions extend to countries and firms that do business with the restricted entities, along with freezing any assets they have under US jurisdiction.

Taken together, the developments around US increases pressure on Iran with sanctions targeting aviation sector point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.