Iran keen on passenger jets production
By Aynur Karimova
Iran is keen on continuing manufacturing IrAn-140 passenger planes despite tragic passenger plane crashes in recent years, one of which occurred last August in the capital, Tehran and claimed the lives of 40 people.
Although President Hassan Rouhani ordered to ban all passenger jets of this model from flying, "we continue manufacturing IrAn-140 plane,” Mohammad Ali Sirati, managing director of Iran Airplane Manufacturing Company (HESA) said, according to local media.
The Ukrainian Antonov aircraft is assembled in Iran under the license issued by HESA and is called IrAn-140.
The first fatal crash of IrAn-140 occurred during a test flight in 2009, killing the crew of five.
Alongside with producing 52-passenger IrAn-140 jets, the Islamic Republic also plans to manufacture 70-passenger planes in the near future.
“Due to our experience in the production of passenger aircraft, design and production of a new plane with a 70-passenger capacity is on the agenda,” Sirati said.
International sanctions imposed on the export of aircrafts and spare parts to Iran have left the country's airline industry saddled with not only some of the oldest fleet in the Middle East, but in the world. Iran's four largest carriers - Iran Air, Aseman Airlines, Mahan Air and Iran Air Tours - all have an average fleet age above 22 years.
Ali Reza Jahangirian, head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization, believes the Islamic Republic's airliners would need to order 400 aircrafts over the next 10 years to replace its depleting and aging fleet.
Out of Iran's 250 commercial planes, about 150 are flying while the rest are "not functional" due to a lack of spare parts, he noted.
Iran has attempted to start its own commercial aviation manufacturing industry and has also sourced aircrafts from Russia and Ukraine.
Iran’s need for passenger planes has increased as the country expects to see an improvement in its transactions with foreign countries, should a final nuclear deal between world powers and Iran be reached.
Since the country reached a tentative nuclear framework agreement in Lausanne in early April it is anticipating a surge in activities and Iran has said to be keen to revamp its aviation fleet.
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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on
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