Dubai-based Emirates airline has been fined AED1,469,188 ($400,000) by the United States for flying over prohibited parts of Iran. The airline was carrying the JetBlueAirways (an American low-cost airline) code, and was hence subject to such a hefty fine. The United States bans its carriers from flying through airspace that it deems dangerous. The rule also applies to foreign carriers operating a flight with a United States airline code, during code share operations. In 2019, DOT fined Lufthansa $25000 for illegal taxation.
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Why Has Emirates Been Fined?
Emirates has recently been paying billions of dollars as refunds to passengers, as a result of flight cancellations. In addition, the airline will now have to pay a hefty fine of AED 1,469,188 for the United States Department of Transportation. Emirates is fined because it flew over the Iranian air space at a time when it was deemed dangerous.
According to the DOT, between July 1-July 19, 2019, Emirates operated multiple flights within the Tehran FIR. The flights in question were conducted under a codeshare agreement with JetBlue. In response to the US NOTAM, Emirates had initially suspended all flights in the Iranian space except its Tehran service. However, as soon as the airline realized its mistake, it immediately removed the codeshare number from flights operating in the Iranian space.
Simple Flying further explained that,
“According to the DOT filing, Emirates initially suspended all flights in Iranian airspace, apart from its Tehran service, in response to the US NOTAM. However, when it did resume flights through the airspace, it inadvertently retained the JetBlue code on such flights. As soon as the airline became aware of this mistake, it removed the codeshare number from flights operating in Iranian airspace.”
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Emirates Opposes To Being Fined Such A Hefty Sum
In response to the huge fine, Emirates said it had operated a small number of flights in July 2019, which did not comply with the FAA NOTAM. The airline also added that it is fully cooperating with the DOT during the subsequent inquiry process. Emirates further mentioned,
“We accept the order of the US Department of Transport (DOT) relating to our compliance with the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Notice-to-Airmen KICZ A0019/19, dated 21 June 2019 (NOTAM)…
Emirates takes its regulatory compliance responsibilities extremely seriously, and we regret that due to an inadvertent oversight, we had operated a small number of flights in July 2019 which did not comply with the FAA NOTAM. When alerted to the matter, we took prompt corrective action, and have co-operated fully with the DOT during the subsequent inquiry process.
Emirates has a strong record of compliance with the Department’s rules and regulations. We devote significant resources and focus to maintain and continue to strengthen our robust compliance record. Indeed, as a foreign carrier with a significant amount of service to the United States, we are proud of our compliance record, which is among the best in the industry.”
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Emirates opposed to being fined such a hefty sum, as the error was a mistake. However, the airline agreed to pay the fine to resolve the issue. DOT also clarified that, half the fine will be waived if the airline avoids similar violations for a year. However, the remaining amount will be imposed once again if Emirates doesn’t pay the first half or violates the same rules again. Emirates will have to pay the fine in the next 120 days.