Farhad Azima

Azima owned a private intelligence firm, Denx LLC, that disbanded in 2016.

Azima has done extensive business in the Middle East. In 2011 he facilitated a deal for the Emirate of Ras al Khaimah to sell the Sheraton Metechi Hotel in Tbisli, Georgia to Houshang Hosseinpour, Pourya Nayebi and Houshang Farsoudeh, three Iranians who were later placed on the US sanctions list. Azima was to receive a 10% commission and Khater Massaad a $500,000 payment. Azima was later cited as key source of information for former Wall Street Journal reporter Jay Solomon’s reporting on the three Iranians’ efforts to evade U.S. sanctions.

Azima has been recognized by the United States Air Force for his services to America during the build-up to and execution of the Gulf War. He has been honored for his role in economic development, particularly in development of the airline industry. In 1997, he received a Citation for Achievement Award by William Jewell College. In 1988, Azima was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

In 1981, Azima founded Global International Airways, a charter and cargo carrier. He is the owner of the Kansas City-based Aviation Leasing Group and HeavyLift International. For many years Azima has been involved in arms shipments. His company’s planes have flown weapons to Pakistan to supply Islamists fighting the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan; to Egypt following the Camp David Accords of 1978 and to Croatia during the war for independence from Yugoslavia.

Farhad Azima (born in 1941) is an American airline operator. He has flown weapons to the Balkans and navigated Washington's power circles.