Turkey-based Southwind Airlines has been prohibited from flying its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft into Russia.
United States authorities blocked the airline from flying its Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft into Russia, prompting the airline to seek capacity from other Russian airlines for transportation between the two countries.
Southwind Airlines was established in 2022, with only one of its eight aircraft not previously operated by a Russian airline.
Former Nordwind Airlines crews are now flying Southwind Airlines aircraft.
While the US cannot directly ban the airline from operating the 737 MAX between Turkey and Russia, sources suggest that US authorities either threatened sanctions against Southwind Airlines or added its 737 MAXs to the sanctioned asset list.
None of Southwind Airlines or its aircraft are currently on the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions list.
Out of the four 737 MAX-8 aircraft listed in Southwind Airlines’ fleet, two have not flown in the past three months, one since April 2023, and another since June 2023.
Southwind Airlines has been using its Airbus A321neo and A321 aircraft, as well as its wide-body aircraft (Airbus A330-200s and one Boeing 777-300ER), for flights between Turkey and Russia.
