How sanctions played havoc with Iran’s ageing helicopters
Iran has been thwarted in efforts to renew its fleet or access spare parts and maintenance contracts. The US-made Bell 212 carrying the country’s president was almost 30 years old when it crashed.
John Paul Rathbone, Sylvia Pfeifer and Philip Georgiadis
The circumstances could hardly have been more difficult as the decades-old helicopter, which had clocked up thousands of hours of air time, embarked on a journey over treacherous terrain in thick fog.
It is unclear why the US-made Bell 212 helicopter that was carrying Iran’s president and foreign minister crashed into a mountainside near the Azerbaijan border on Sunday.
