MOU for 118 Airbus planes signed in president's France visit
Tehran, Jan 29, IRNA – Managing Director of National Iranian Airlines (HOMA) Farhad Parvaresh said on Friday initial memorandum of understanding (MOU) for purchasing 118 Airbus planes worth 10.5 billion dollars was signed during President Hassan Rouhani's visit of France.
'Major part of the amount of this huge deal will be covered through a finance deal; 45 of the 118 Airbus planes are the middle-and-near-far-range Airbus 330 planes, 16 of them are the modern Airbus 350s, and 12 of them the Airbus wide body Airbus planes, which are continental far-range planes,' said Parvaresh.
Elaborating on Airbus 350s, he said that they are far range, very modern planes used only by a couple of airlines in the Middle East region currently.
On Airbus 380s, too, he said that those continental, far-range planes are convertible in accordance with the country's needs of the day and will be delivered to Iran within the next 4 to 5 years.
'But the delivery of 12 of them depends on provision of the required financial conditions and further development of the Iranian airports' conditions, since they are very large and wide body planes,' added official.
On the time for delivery of those Airbus planes, the HOMA managing director said that delivery of new planes is a time-taking process, since they are not made prior to receiving orders and the Airbus also had orders prior to the Iranian demand.
Parvaresh said that Airbus has promised to deliver 5 to 8 of those 118 planes within the remaining 11 months of the current year, 2016 to Iran.
He also emphasized that parallel with receiving these new planes the Iranian passenger air fleet will be renovated and the oldest planes will be retired each year and proportionately with the receiving any number of the new planes.
HOMA managing director said that maintenance, after-sale services and repairs of the new planes, too, are included in the signed contract for purchasing them and the Airbus Company is responsible for all such services.