Baku, Azerbaijan, July 31
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
Iran has held negotiations with Japan to buy MRJ(Mitsubishi Regional Jet) aircrafts, Iran's Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development for international affairs, Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, said.
The MRJ is a twin-engine regional jet aircraft capable of carrying 70–90 passengers.
Fakhrieh Kashan made the remarks while explaining the results of his last week visit to Japan, Fars news agency reported July 31.
On July 22, Tehran and Tokyo signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further broaden mutual cooperation in the field of transportation. The deal was signed in a ceremony in Tokyo by Fakhrieh Kashan and his Japanese counterpart Hiroshi Tabata.
The Japanese side has agreed to allocate $10 billion worth of credit for various projects in Iran, Fakhrieh Kashan said, adding, Tokyo also accepted to finance Iranian airlines’ aircraft purchase without the government’s guarantee.
“Iranian side announced that financing certain projects including airport construction as well as aircraft purchase does not need government’s guarantee,” he said.
It was earlier announced that Iran is willing to buy 25 short-haul airplane value up to $500 thousand from Japan’s Mitsubishi Aircraft Organization.
Iran needs at least 550 new passenger planes till 2025 to renovate its ageing fleet. The Iranian airlines currently have a total of 266 aircrafts, meanwhile only 12 planes were made after 2000.
Earlier the country’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi said that some 100 aircraft of Iran’s fleet are grounded, adding 166 planes are up to 23 years old which should be retired within one year according to the international aviation standards.