Iran Air: India and Singapore refuse flight permits for medicine transport

Taher Abdolhayy, chief executive of Iran Air ("Homa"), announced on Monday, 19 October 2026, that India and Singapore are not issuing permits for the airline's planes to fly medicine to Iran. The remarks come as the shortage of medicine and medical equipment in Iran's hospitals has reached an alarming level.

The Iran Air chief executive also said that of the company's roughly 40 aircraft, only six are now operational, even though Iran Air has more than 9,000 employees. The company's aging fleet has been grounded for years because of sanctions and a lack of spare parts, and the war and the US naval blockade have made its situation worse.

Medicine shortage in Iran

Only a few hours before these remarks, the head of the health committee of the Islamic Republic's parliament had called the shortage of medicine and medical equipment "alarming", and reports describe hospitals asking patients to bring their own sheets and blankets. Iran Air was previously one of the main carriers of medicine from Europe; the company's managers have said in past years that medicine made up a large share of the cargo on its European flights.

Islamic Republic officials consistently blame sanctions for the shortage of medicine, but medicine and medical equipment are exempt from US sanctions. Critics say the government's policies, from warmongering in the region and in the Strait of Hormuz to corruption in the allocation of foreign currency for medicine, have closed off the routes for supplying medicine one after another. The halt of trade at the border crossings with Pakistan has also blocked another route for importing goods.

Of Iran Air's 40 aircraft, only six are active, and countries in the region are refusing permits for its medicine flights.