Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 18
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Head of Iran Civil Aviation Organization Alireza Jahangirian said that the country's private sector is permitted to import aircrafts, Iran's Mehr news agency reported Nov. 18.
The organization has issued license for aircraft imports by private sector investors, Jahangirian said.
The U.S.-led sanctions on aircraft and spare parts exports to Iran have left the Iranian airlines saddled with not only some of the oldest fleet in the Middle East, but in the world.
Earlier Jahangirian said that the country needs at least 300 operational airplanes, while currently the country has only about 150, each of which are averagely 20 years old.
The Islamic Republic also has 76 in storage with an average age of 24 years.
Iran Air airlines is in similar condition - they have 37 active aircraft, the average age of which is 24 years. Another two active Boeing 747 planes have been flying for close to four decades.
While Iran has attempted to kick start its own commercial aviation manufacturing industry and has also sourced aircraft from Russia and Ukraine, its efforts to acquire Western-made aircraft and spare parts have largely failed due to sanctions.
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