Whistleblower Pilot Detained for Exposing Violations in Iranian Airlines

Amin Amir-Sadeghi, a pilot who revealed technical deficiencies in certain aircraft and the negligence of managers in a television program, announced his detention. The Civil Aviation Organization of Iran has labeled Amir-Sadeghi's statements as 'false.' The television program, known as 'Hala Khorshid,' aired on Saturday, July 23, and Amir-Sadeghi posted a video on his Instagram account on Sunday, stating that he was detained due to his comments on the show. In the video, he is seen with handcuffs and mentions that he was arrested by 'Police Station 111 Haft-Chenar.' He expressed regret that his concern for 'people's lives' led to such a reaction. Iranian judicial authorities have not yet responded to the news of the pilot's detention. Previously, Amir-Sadeghi stated on 'Hala Khorshid' that managers in the aviation industry force pilots to fly aircraft with technical deficiencies without leaving any evidence of their violations. He also mentioned that a colleague with thousands of flight hours was summoned to a disciplinary committee and subsequently fired for refusing to fly a Boeing 737 that 'lacked brake number three.' The co-pilot claimed he had also verbally informed Ali Abedzadeh, the head of the Civil Aviation Organization, about these violations. However, hours after the morning broadcast of 'Hala Khorshid,' the Civil Aviation Organization issued a statement calling the claims made in the program 'false' and announced that it takes any reports of violations of safety protocols 'very seriously' while maintaining 'continuous oversight' of airlines. The organization also noted that the participant in the television program, after ending his collaboration with an aviation training school, is 'undergoing training to be promoted to co-pilot,' but a foreign instructor deemed him 'not qualified for promotion,' stating that all processes mentioned were at this educational stage. The Civil Aviation Organization also warned against making such statements, stating they 'give the U.S. a reason,' a phrase that also drew criticism from the host of the evening segment of 'Hala Khorshid.' Reza Rashidpour, the host, remarked after reading the statement that the question was neither about the U.S. nor about sanctions, but rather 'about the management and oversight system.' Last month, Farzaneh Sharaf-Bafi, the CEO of Iran Air, noted that the conditions of the aviation industry in neighboring countries are better than Iran's, and that Iran struggles to replace aircraft parts. She also predicted that with the return of U.S. sanctions, 'soon the delivery of fuel for our international flights will also be cut off, and we will have to send suitcase after suitcase of money to secure fuel.' In recent years, the aging Iranian fleet has led to many deadly accidents, including a collision of an 'Asman' airline aircraft with Mount Dena in the winter of 1996, which resulted in the death of all 65 passengers on board. After reports surfaced that the mentioned aircraft had technical deficiencies even before the crash, the public relations manager of 'Asman' denied these reports, stating that 'the cause of the accident was weather conditions and the unsuitable location of Yasuj airport.'