...

Iran signs $21B worth of contracts in aviation field

Business Materials 25 September 2015 10:59 (UTC +04:00)
Iran signed $21 billion worth of contracts in the aviation field on the sidelines of the MAKS-2015 International Aviation and Space Salon held in Russia in August, Manouchehr Manteghi, secretary of Iran ’s Technology Development and Knowledge-based Aviation and Aeronautical Industries Headquarters said.
Iran signs $21B worth of contracts in aviation field

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 23

By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran signed $21 billion worth of contracts in the aviation field on the sidelines of the MAKS-2015 International Aviation and Space Salon held in Russia in August, Manouchehr Manteghi, secretary of Iran 's Technology Development and Knowledge-based Aviation and Aeronautical Industries Headquarters said.

Some of the aforementioned contracts are for buying Russian twin-engine Superjet 100 aircraft, Manteghi said, Iran 's semi-official ISNA news agency reported Sept. 23.

He did not disclose further details about the contracts.

Iranian airlines are interested in using the aircraft in their fleet, Manteghi said, adding alongside with buying the planes, Tehran plans to indigenize plane-manufacturing technology to build some parts of the aircraft inside the country.

The 108-seat Sukhoi Superjet is the first new airliner Russia has developed since the fall of the Soviet Union.

It was earlier announced that three Iranian Kish Air, Zagros and Caspian airlines have held talks with Russian Sukhoi to buy Superjet 100 aircraft.

It is while Iranian Roads and Urban Development Minister Abbas Akhoundi said Sept. 22 that no negotiations have been made with the Russian aircraft manufacturer, and all the talks have been made with Airbus and Boeing. Iran has no plan to use Russian Sukhoi to revamp its aviation fleet, the minister added.

Manteghi further said that grounds were prepared for cooperation with companies from the UK, Switzerland, Denmark, Belgium, and Germany in the aviation area.

The MAKS-2015 exhibition laid grounds for Iran's future cooperation with foreign companies in the fields of commercial helicopters and drones as well as technology transfer in the area of commercial aircrafts' design and manufacturing, he added.

Tehran has held negotiations with Airbus as well as other French, Russian, German and Czech companies to buy aircraft parts, Manteghi noted.

Director of Iran 's Civil Aviation Organization Mohammad Khodakarami said on August 30 that the country is planning to buy 90 passenger airplanes each year as part of efforts aimed at renovating its civil aviation fleet. Iran is going to buy Airbus and Boeing airliners and the annual purchase of 80 to 90 airplanes is the first phase of the renovation program, he added.

Iran's four largest carriers -- Iran Air, Aseman Airlines, Mahan Air and Iran Air Tours -- all have average fleet age above 22 years, according to the Iranian media outlets.

Edited by CN

Follow the author on Twitter: @UmidNiayesh

Tags:
Latest

Latest