Flights from Mazar-e-Sharif

Several chartered aircraft have been grounded at an airport in northern Afghanistan for several weeks dating back to the end of August. Private organizations had contracted for passenger aircraft to land at Marzar-e-Sharif airport to evacuate American citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs with Green Cards), and other Afghans with visas for travel to the United States.

A combination of factors kept the airplanes on the runway and about 1,200 people in hotels, guest rooms, and private residences in Mazar-e-Sharif. The blame can likely be shared equally with the Taliban and the Department of State.

Who is Paying? The funding for some of the aircraft is apparently from The Nazerene Fund. It is an organization that seeks to aid Christians and other persecuted religious and ethnic minorities wherever and whenever they are in need. Glenn Beck is the Founder of the Narzerene Fund and also sits on the board of directors. Mercury One is a charity founded by TNF's founder Glenn Beck. TNF often works with Mercury One to rescue those in need - however, they are separate organizations that work closely together. It is likely that a few of the aircraft are funded by a number of private organizations, volunteers, and donors.

Who are the Passengers? The flight manifests have been compiled by a number of organizations - and some names for the manifests provided by Congressional offices. Several organizations directed their 'clients' to head for Mazar-e-Sharif to board planes that had or would have landed. Among the over 1000 people hoping to fly out were a mix of people - some were foreign nationals, some were Afghans with an Afghan passport and visa, while others simply had no travel documents at all.

Manifest Issues. The passengers on the manifest who are supposed to be on the aircraft when the airplane takes off from MeS are not always the passengers who disembark from the aircraft when it lands in Qatar, the UAE, or elsewhere. Some passengers are flying with forged or fake documents which pass inspection by the Taliban in MeS but not upon arrival in the Middle East. Typically 'straphangers' bribe their way (rich Afghans) or force their way (Taliban) onto the aircraft displacing some of the passengers who were listed on the 'original manifest' provided to the Department of State and the 'receiving country'. This has caused DoS and the countries receiving the flights to temporarily discontinue the flights.

Taliban Obstacles. Part of the reason for the grounded aircraft is the refusal of the current regime to allow passengers without the proper travel papers to depart. Many of those wishing to get on the flights do not have passports or visas.

DoS - Less Than Helpful. The Department of State is accused of putting up a lot of roadblocks to prevent the MeS planes from taking off. One example is the lack of providing a diplomatic letter, known as a 'no objection certificate' or NOC, to the receiving countries indicating that they had no objections to the airplanes landing on their airports. When this sad chapter concludes there will likely be some stories to be told.

Kam Air Planes. Most of the charter planes flying out of MeS are Kam Air. For more information on the airlines planes see the link at flightrader24.

MeS Flights by Sayara. Senator Blumenthal's (D-CT) office stated that two flights with 800 people left Mazar-e-Sharif on private charter aircraft chartered by Sayara International. The aircraft flew to Al Udeid Air Force Base in Qatar arriving on September 21 and October 3.

MeS Flight Kam Air 4401. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/KMF4401

MeS Flight Kam Air 4403. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/KMF4403

MeS Flight Kam Air 4405. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/KMF4405

MeS Flight Kam Air 4407. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/KMF4407