Well this is without a doubt the most interesting airline story of 2021, even though we actually have no clue what happened.
Continue reading: Bizarre: Fly Armenia 737 Diverts To Iran, Goes “Missing”
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Such a far leap from the 707s and 747-SPs. Imagine. Enthusiasts will be going to Iran to fly on 737-300s someday :*(
Good for them. Need to find creative ways to get around the US's efforts to control the world.
I remember reading a similar incident that happened in 2015, when AlNaser Airlines, an Iraqi carrier had acquired A340s. They were on their to Kazakhstan for scheduled maintenance but weirdly, declared an emergency over the Iranian Airspace and diverted to Tehran. Aaaaand, Mahan Air, an Iranian carrier under the sanctions of the US Government for transporting weapons between Iran and Syria, acquired the four A340s.
The sanctions are stupid and counterproductive. Good for them for getting their jet.
Maybe you don't know this, but Estonia is a part of the EU. So it didn't enter the EU on this flight. It originated and landed in the EU. So clearly they had previously received permission to have the plane in Tallinn.
Just out of curiosity, what makes GetJet questionable? Finnair used to lease an A320 from them for quite some time few years ago.
"For unknown reasons, the plane instead flew to Varna, Bulgaria; this is especially strange because airplanes registered in Armenia are blacklisted from the European Union"
If that's the case, how did the plane got into TLL in the first place?
Flown internally many times in Iran. Boy do they need some new planes. Pretty sad that sanctions means spare parts are hard to come by and have to be manufactured within country and regular people are affected by poor flight safety records 🙁
Took me a while to find but I managed to playback the flight on flightradar24. Seems to have been following the typical Europe-Middle East track but then deviated over southern Turkey and then entered Iranian airspace from the north. The aircraft carried on at 32,000 where it was subsequently lost coverage over Iran. Ironically, it seems to have declared an 'emergency' not too far from Yerevan. Most likely going to an Iranian Airline but would have thought they'd have purchased a more modern plane through these means.
I investigated quite a bit into this. Looking at their website, it’s just like a Wix template with a text written by a 10-year-old. They also have a “call-center”, however that phone number doesn’t exist, it’s a fake one. Also their “office” address is actually OSCE office in Armenia, as well as Military Prosecutors Office. Their logo is Air Italy logo with colors of Armenian flag. They have a “booking system”, which is actually not real, just a template, with “book” button redirecting to a some kind of city guide. Also, they stated that they’re soon going to fly to Beijing and Prague, with the first one being unreachable by the range of 737-300/-400 and second one is banned by the EU.
Yep, definitely sanction busting. Someone probably made a ton of money for setting up a fake company and getting the plane to Iran. Lets see if the US will try to (and succeed) in catching the perps (I think very unlikely).
Don't worry - Joe's already working on removing sanctions, so Iran will get new planes soon enough. Oh, and also Nukes.
We never learn...
I am pleasantly surprised at the number of comments supporting Iran breaking the sanctions. Must be hardly a Biden/Trump voter in the group and/or non Americans!
@Alan - good for them breaking sanctions. Iran hasn't really ever done anything besides be opposed to the Saudis. If the oil were swapped, we'd support the Iranians and have sanctioned the Saudis. It's asinine.
Either way, I'm surprised the Russians don't just sell Iran a bunch of SSJ-100s. I reckon the Chinese will sell Comacs to Iran without calling much about sanctions.
To all those supporting Iran skirting here sanctions: Really?!!!! Are you all unaware of all the terror financing and peddling that Iran does all over the world? It is not a secret and their Revolutionary Guard travels the world to train and supply terrorists and plan and order terror attacks.
Considering the registration UR-CNP it is actually registered in Ukraine so enterig EU is not an issue.
LOL at them nicking Air Italy's logo... @Mike you're right indeed it is, recoloured in the Armenian flag colours.
I went to the website too, but some things seem to have changed:
-The destinations page only lists Russian destinations now; can't find Beijing or Prague.
-The 'owner' actually seems to have a 'real' office now, according to Google Maps. However, going into a nearby photosphere revealed only some residential buildings, with the 'office' hidden behind a tree.
-The text, though... 3rd-grade me would have done a better job, if I may say so myself.
Looks like someone actually tried to make the operation look legit, but failed.
Dear Ben,
I would like to inform you that B737-300 MSN28873, previous registration LY-ELF, was leased from Ireland registered lessor under operating lease (dry lease agreement only) and aircraft was redelivered back to lessor more than a year ago. Dry lease agreement was terminated on 3rd of February 2020 and removed from GetJet Airlines AOC. Lease termination and all related documents were submitted to all authorities as per existing regulations.
Neither GetJet Airlines nor any of its related companies never owned above mentioned aircraft or any of its engines and never entered into any sale or purchase agreement. Furthermore, it’s important to mention that GetJet Airlines never had any dealings with Fly Armenia or any other parties related to Fly Armenia.
Please note, GetJet Airlines is not a leasing company. GetJet Airlines is an IOSA registered airline headquartered in Vilnius, Lithuania that offers ACMI and Charter services. We fly on behalf of well-known international airlines and major tour operators in Baltic states.
Statements about GetJet Airlines posted by you are misleading and incorrect. Information you have provided in your article may have negative impact on the company’s reputation.
I kindly ask you to correct the article and remove GetJet Airlines reference.
Regards,
Darius Viltrakis
CEO GetJet Airlines
Is this something dangerous to post a sanction to particular country, but let the country still fly the aircraft? There must be skipped maintenance due to sanction. Does aircraft manufacture has concern, since the likelihood of the aircraft get issue is higher, and it will impact to safety record for those particular aircraft?
Why isn't the US punishing Armenia for breaking US sanctions? This is ridiculous! Other countries are severely punished for this behavior. Why not Armenia? Is it because of the powerful Armenian special interests, who contribute to many election campaigns on Capitol Hill? Pay to play?