Israel Bars Iranian-Affiliated Pilot From Entering Country

Israel's Ministry of Transport has informed United Airlines that pilot Sina Amadjian will not be permitted to enter the country as aircrew. This decision follows the identification of social media posts by Amadjian, who is of Iranian origin, by the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism. The ministry then forwarded his details for investigation.

Amadjian reportedly shared images of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Islamic Republic flags on social media, and criticized Israeli strikes in Iran. He is said to reside in Dubai and previously worked for Flydubai before joining United Airlines. Information gathered by the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs was passed to the Ministry of Transport's Security Department and then to Israeli intelligence and security agencies. A recommendation was made not to allow Amadjian into Israel as aircrew, leading to the official notification to United Airlines and the transfer of his details to Israeli aviation security and population authorities.

However, the Ministry of Transport clarified that Amadjian currently operates domestic flights within the United States and Canada and is not scheduled for any flights to Israel. Therefore, the directive does not affect his current assignments. Among his shared posts was a video showing portraits of Khamenei and Islamic Republic flags, and a June 15, 2025, story mourning an Iran Air flight attendant and her family, allegedly killed in an Israeli strike in Tehran, questioning why aircrew have become military targets.

Further posts included a reference to an attack on a girls' school in Minab, southern Iran, on February 28, 2026, which Iranian authorities claimed killed 168 children. While U.S. officials reportedly suggested possible American responsibility for that attack, the lack of a year on Amadjian's post makes its direct connection uncertain. An open-source intelligence investigator, Travis Hauli, also reportedly attributed pro-Iranian regime and Hezbollah support to Amadjian, though these claims were not independently verified.

The incident reignites debate over the vetting of foreign aircrew entering Israel. According to Dany Sha'nar, former head of the Ministry of Transport's Security Department, a 2003 government decision assigned his department responsibility for vetting foreign aircrews, requiring airlines to submit crew information for landing permits. In this case, however, initial information about Amadjian was found by the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, not the Ministry of Transport's security wing, before being passed to relevant authorities.

This issue was previously highlighted after an attempted hijacking of a Flydubai plane on September 30, when an Omani co-pilot attacked the captain en route to Israel from Dubai. The flight made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. Following that incident, criticism arose regarding the security vetting of foreign aircrews, with the Ministry of Transport's Security Department stating that intelligence background checks were not their responsibility and that Flydubai pilot names were not provided in advance.