Iran expects A320, A330 planes by 2017

Iran said on Monday that it expects to receive five to eight Airbus planes by the end of 2016.

According to Press TV, Ali Abedzadeh, the head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization (CAO), has been quoted by the media as saying that the planes will be A320 and A330 passenger jets which will be handed over to Iran’s national flag carrier Iran Air within the next months.

This, Abedzadeh said, will be based on a draft agreement that was signed with Airbus in January during the visit to Paris by President Hassan Rouhani.

He further expressed hope that the problems over providing funds for Iran’s plane purchases from Airbus would be resolved by the related institutions as soon as possible.

Abedzadeh also said that the draft agreement with Airbus will be finalized in the near future.

The French Transport Minister Alain Vidalies said last week that negotiations over the agreement have been finalized, adding that Airbus has already started proceedings to provide planes and aviation equipment to the Islamic Republic.

Vidalies - who had arrived in Tehran on Sunday night on board of the first Air France jet to land in Iran in eight years - added that negotiations are at the same time underway with the administration of President Barack Obama to receive the required authorizations for sales of planes to Iran.

SS