Tehran, Iran, Dec.12
Trend:
Iran's Civil Aviation Organization (CAO) has expressed intention to purchase Sukhoi passenger planes for its airlines.
"If Iranian airline companies are willing to use this type of aircraft and the supplier would also like to sell the aircraft to Iran, the Iranian Civil Aviation Organization is prepared to make a final comment in this regard," Trend reports as Fars News Agency cited Head of Civil Aviation Organization Ali Abedzadeh.
"The plane operates according to the international standards, so we would not deny the aircraft,” he added.
"Sukhoi Company has received the necessary license from Russia's State Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA); the plane is jointly manufactured with some European countries," he said.
Sukhoi Superjet 100, a passenger plane, is manufactured by Russia while 10 percent of its spare parts are produced in the United States. Due to US sanctions against Iran, the Department of the Treasury does not allow the Russian company to sell its products to Iran.
According to the Iranian official, the company is seeking to reduce its US produced spare parts to under 10 percent so it can receive a license to sell the aircraft to Iran.
Abedzadeh also noted the issue of Sukhoi's adaptability to the Iranian climate.
"The issue of climate adaptability is not a new discussion, our country has mountains, seas and deserts, many of our airports are offshore or higher than the sea level, therefore it is not a concrete discussion," he said.
“It is possible that a plane functions well in one geographical condition or faces limits in another. The plane should be appropriate for the fly route and airport," he said.
After the US unilateral move to leave the Iran nuclear deal and re-implement sanctions, selling planes to Iran was banned and the Iran Air contracts with three manufacturing companies of ATR, Boeing and Airbus have been suspended.
“The ATR, Boeing or Airbus planes fly all over the world; ATRs fly in Thailand and America, therefore it is the operator that decides how to use the plane," Abedzadeh noted.