By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-09-23 21:17:05 | Updated at 2026-09-23 21:59:17
51 minutes ago
A plane operated by a U.S.-sanctioned Iranian airline landed in southern China on Sept. 23, hours after a Treasury Department deadline ended a temporary wind-down period for certain Iran-related transactions.
Independent flight tracking service Flightradar24 records show that Mahan Air flight W593, an Airbus A340-300, departed Tehran at 1:04 a.m. UTC and landed at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport at 8:39 a.m. UTC, or 4:39 p.m. local time.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had allowed certain previously authorized Iran-related civil aviation and other transactions to be wound down through 12:01 a.m. EDT on Sept. 23, or 4:01 a.m. UTC.
The temporary authorizations gave companies time to complete or unwind transactions that had been permitted before Treasury suspended them on Sept. 8.
The aircraft left Tehran before the deadline but arrived in Guangzhou more than four hours after it expired.
The Sept. 23 deadline fell during the U.N. General Assembly’s high-level week in New York, where Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was attending the annual gathering.
The State Department said the United States allowed a core delegation from Iran to attend in line with its obligations as host of the United Nations, while imposing travel restrictions on the delegation.
On Sept. 8, Treasury sanctioned Iran’s remaining active airlines and warned foreign entities that supporting Iran’s aviation sector could expose them to U.S. sanctions.
The department said Iran’s aviation sector has been used to move weapons, personnel, and illicit cargo.
Asked on Sept. 22 whether China would accommodate Iranian flights expected in Guangzhou and Shanghai, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Beijing opposed unilateral sanctions lacking a U.N. Security Council mandate.
He repeated that position when asked on Sept. 23 whether China would continue receiving flights from Tehran.
The flight-tracking record establishes that the Mahan Air aircraft reached Guangzhou. It does not identify which companies provided fuel, ground handling, passenger services, maintenance, or other support after arrival.
Mahan Air Sanctions
Mahan Air has been under U.S. counterterrorism sanctions since 2011.
Treasury says the airline has provided financial, material, and technological support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.
On July 30, Treasury sanctioned a network it said supported Mahan Air, including China-based Shanghai Wings International Logistics Co. and Shanghai Elite International Travel Co.
Treasury said Mahan Air has served as a conduit for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ movement of weapons, personnel, and military equipment.
China-based firms have faced similar action before.
In 2020, the Treasury Department designated Shanghai Saint Logistics Limited for acting as Mahan Air’s cargo general sales agent in Shanghai.
Treasury said at the time that services including freight booking, reservations and ticketing, aircraft maintenance, ground services, catering, and refueling could create sanctions exposure when provided for designated airlines.
Flightradar24 records show the plane later departed Guangzhou for Tehran at 6:56 p.m. local time on Sept. 23.
