Page 56 - IRANRptOct20

9.2.3​ Aviation corporate news
US fines Emirates $400,000 for flying over Iran
Iran’s Mahan Air suspends restart of scheduled Tehran, Istanbul flights as coronavirus flares up
The US Department of Transportation has fined Emirates Airlines $400,000 for last year operating flights in parts of prohibited Iranian airspace, Reuters reported on October 1.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) airline was using a “code-share” with US airline JetBlue and was therefore subject to US regulations. The department reportedly said that for 19 days in July 2019, Emirates operated flights over parts of Iranian airspace, even though the US Federal Aviation Administration had barred flights because of heightened military activities and increased political tensions.
The airline said that the problem arose because of "inadvertent oversight", but "agreed to this settlement in the interests of resolving this issue."
Emirates must pay $200,000 of the fine within 120 days. The remainder will be waived if it has no further violations within one year.
The airline was also cited as telling the department it had suspended all flight operations in the designated Iranian airspace except twice-daily service to Tehran “for a limited time period, at a significant cost to Emirates”.
Iran’s Mahan Air has suspended the restart of its scheduled flights between Tehran and Istanbul until November 1, the Turkish government announced on September 16.
Turkish authorities are watching coronavirus (COVID-19) developments in Iran, with a second spike, or what some observers are referring to as a third spike, now occurring two weeks after mass religious ceremonies during the Ashura and Muharram religious festival. The prospect of bringing in infected passengers is behind the postponement although Turkey has its own severe coronavirus outbreak to worry about, the severity of which, according to healthcare professionals, is not at all being relayed by the country’s official statistics.
Turkish aviation officials said that they expected other Iranian airlines to announce further delays in restarting flights to Turkey in coming days. However, six Istanbul-Turkey flights are going ahead, including six repatriation flights chartered by Iran to bring Iranian citizens back home.
Turkish Airlines previously announced that the booking system of flights to Iran would not restart until October 1.
Iran has said that date is not set in stone.
9.2.4​ Healthcare corporate news
Iranian private insurance company opens in Iraq
Iranian private insurer Saman Insurance Co has opened in Iraq, according to IBENA.
Iran’s insurance industry is growing year by year as the sector matures and it is managing to open new ventures and joint projects in neighbouring states. Saman Insurance, a subsidiary of Saman Bank, is one of Iran’s newest operators and privately owned. It has strived to beat a separate path from many competitors.
As part of the Iraq branch offer, the company plans to offer cross-border health and emergency insurance to Iranians visiting Iraq.
Majority Shiite Iraq is a major destination for Iranian pilgrims who account for 20% of Iran's outbound tourism.
Saman Insurance has opened in Baghdad, while it has also kicked off two offices in the holy shrine city of Karbala.
The company said it planned to expand operations in Basra, Najaf and Iraqi
56​ IRAN Country Report October 2020 www.intellinews.com