Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 21
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
Controversy rose in Iran over the Boeing aircraft recently sent to the country after Iranian Civil Aviation Organization rejected reports about buying the aircraft, Mehr news agency reported Sept. 21.
Reza Jafarzadeh, the head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization public relations office, said a Boeing 737 was rented, not purchased by Iran’s Naft Airlines.
Earlier Nourollah Rezaie Niaraki, the managing director of Naft Airlines, said the first aircraft which was purchased from the American company Boeing, was delivered to the company on Sept. 18
The Iranian Naft Airlines signed a deal with Boeing to purchase four 737 planes following the removal of sanctions, Niaraki said, adding the remaining three aircraft will be delivered to Iran by March 2017.
He further said the passenger carrying capacity of the Iranian Naft Airlines has increased by 150 seats to 900 seats after the purchase of the new aircraft.
This is while the purchase of Boeing aircraft by Iran is still facing restrictions imposed by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Niaraki said in July that Naft Airlines plans to purchase 10 Airbus aircrafts to quickly develop its fleet.