Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 26
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Three Iranian airlines have held talks with Russian Sukhoi to buy twin-engine Superjet 100 aircraft.
Iranian Kish Air, Zagros and Caspian companies are the three airlines interested in using the aircraft in their fleet, the Islamic Republic's Fars news agency reported August 26.
Meanwhile Sorena Sattari, the Iranian Vice-President for Science and Technology who is visiting Moscow said that buying the Superjet 100 aircraft is on the agenda, underlining that Iranian companies are interested in this modern plane due to its low cost.
He said an international consortium manufactures the Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft, underlining that the aircraft is completely different with other Russian passenger planes.
The 108-seat Sukhoi Superjet is the first new airliner Russia has developed since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Iran would face no problem in maintaining and repair of the Sukhoi Superjet due to its similarities with Airbus, Sattari said.
Iranian airlines in total are not interested in buying any more Russian planes. Their performance was unsatisfactory when flown in the country's aviation market during the sanctions period.
However, Russian aircraft manufacturers remain interested in Iran's market despite negative viewpoints in Iran.
In mid-July Russia 's Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said that Tehran and Moscow are holding talks over Russia supplying the Islamic Republic with Sukhoi Superjet passenger planes.
Yesterday Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin also said that Russia intends to provide Iran with the civil aircraft in the near future.
"We do not exclude the possibility that Iran may become one of our partners in the procurement of Russian civil aircraft," Rogozin said.
Sattari also said that Iran and Russia have finalized several important agreements in the fields of science and technology, including aviation.
Edited by CN
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