Can the US ban Iranian airlines worldwide – and what would it mean?

United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has announced that all Iranian airlines could in effect be shut out of international operations from Wednesday as he warned companies against providing services to the country’s carriers.

“On September 23, all the Iranian airlines will be shut down around the world,” Bessent said on Monday.

He warned that the sanctions are not only aimed at airlines but also at the operations chain. “If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets or you will be knocked out of the dollar system,” he said.

The announcement marked a step up in US President Donald Trump’s “Operation Economic Outcast” to squeeze Tehran’s already battered economy.

So how can the US ground Iranian airlines? And what does it mean for millions of travellers in the Middle East?

Iran’s civil aviation sector has aged and fallen increasingly behind global standards due to decades-long US sanctions.

On September 8, the US sanctioned all of the country’s 27 carriers, which Washington has said “the regime uses to move weapons, personnel and illicit cargo.”

The principal carriers operating outside Iran are Mahan Air, state-owned Iran Air and Qeshm Air. Smaller airlines also serve regional destinations.