Following a significant improvement in Iran aviation sector, the Islamic Republic plans to launch a new airline company, called Tehran Air.
The Iranian media quoted Mohammad Ilkhani, an informed source, to say that the new airline will become operational in the country by next April.
The new airline will deploy 11 aircraft "” four Airbus 340 and seven Airbus 321 planes.
Ilkhani was quoted by the Persian-language news agency Tasnim as saying that the airline"™s fleet is less than 15 years old.
He said Airbus 340 planes will be used for long-distance international flights while Airbus 321 planes will be used for domestic and regional flights.
Ilkhani further noted that the process to launch Tehran Air started about two years ago. He said the planes have already been purchased during these two years.
Ahead of his Europe visit, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tehran would probably sign a deal to buy Airbus aircraft during his visit to France, AFP reported on November 11.
Abbas Akhoundi, Iranian minister of roads and urban development, said Iran"™s talks with leading plane manufacturers are currently on for purchase of new airliners.
Akhoundi said the Islamic republic is negotiating with first-class aircraft suppliers for sourcing the airplanes which the country needs.
He has already said Iran was talking to both Airbus and Boeing to acquire aircraft under lease or via sale/leaseback deals by 2020.
Earlier, Iranian media reported that the country had bought 13 Boeing-737-400 passenger planes that were manufactured between 1995 and 2000.
Iran has a decrepit civil aviation fleet, with some airplanes averaging 25 years of age, partly due to international sanctions. The country is in the midst of a drive to upgrade its fleet. It is planning to add some 400 new airplanes in the first five years after sanctions are removed…
