South Africa lets US-sanctioned Russian plane in, further straining ties

Key topics:

• South Africa unknowingly cleared US-sanctioned Abakan Air for cargo flight.

• Abakan Air previously blacklisted for transporting Russian military equipment.

• US-SA relations strained over past Russian cargo incidents and trade disputes.

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By Prinesha Naidoo

South Africa issued a flight permit to a Russian aircraft operator sanctioned by the US, saying it was unaware that the company had been blacklisted.

An Abakan Air cargo plane, blacklisted last year by the US for transporting Russian military equipment, landed in South Africa with a heavy load on Thursday, according to Rapport. The aircraft flew to Upington in the Northern Cape province, via Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, before refueling at Lanseria Airport outside Johannesburg and departing the country with an empty hold, the website reported, citing data from FlightRadar24.

South Africa’s Department of Transport issued a foreign operator’s permit to Abakan Air on Sept. 23 for the transportation of general cargo, a civilian helicopter and “acrobatic” aircraft, spokesperson Collen Msibi said in response to Bloomberg’s queries. 

South Africa hasn’t been informed by any other government that Abakan Air has been blacklisted, Msibi said. “It must also be noted that the South African government has not blacklisted the operator,” he added.

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The website of the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control shows Russia’s Abakan Air has been sanctioned.

The flight comes three years after a Russian cargo ship docked at a naval base near Cape Town, sparking a diplomatic row between Pretoria and Washington. The former US Ambassador to South Africa claimed weapons were loaded onto the ship. The fallout jeopardized the African nation’s preferential trade access to the world’s biggest economy and the rand fell to a record low against the dollar. 

A judicial probe initiated by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa found no evidence to back up the US ambassador’s allegations. 

Relations between Washington and Pretoria have deteriorated further since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. Trump froze US aid to South Africa and hit the country with the highest import tariffs in sub-Saharan Africa, after falsely claiming that the government is presiding over a genocide of White Afrikaans farmers.

American lawmakers are also considering a bill seeking a full review of ties between the countries, alleging that Pretoria supports adversaries of the US.

Abakan Air is also on a debt watchlist for payment arrears for aviation services, including fuel, Rapport said. Its cargo plane was in Iran for some time before its flight to South Africa, according to the website.

© 2025 Bloomberg L.P.