Iran Plans to Annually Export $500 mln of Aircraft Parts in 4 Years
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Managing director of Iran's Aviation Industries Organization said the country plans to bring about a five-fold increase in the export of aircraft parts in a four-year time span, saying the amount is set to reach some $500 million by the end of 2017.
At present, Iran’s annual export of aircraft parts amounts to $100 million, Manouchehr Manteqi told reporters, but added that given the country's existing potentials that figure could increase fivefold in a period of four years.
“According to the plans, we should raise the export of aircraft parts to $500 million by the end of 2017,” he explained.
He said local manufacturers have the required potential to achieve that target, but added that they should first be authorized by Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization.
In late August, Head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization Hamid Reza Pahlevani said the country plans to boost its national civil air fleet by increasing the number of passenger planes to 500 within the next 13 years.
He had explained that the country has set out a plan to increase the number of its airliners to 500 by 2025, with the aim of lowering the average age of its civil aircraft fleet.
Iran has several private and public airline companies in operation. The oldest is the state-run Iran Air.
The expansion of Iran's commercial aircraft fleet comes despite the US-led sanctions against the country's civil aviation industry since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
The tough sanctions ban international companies from selling aircraft or their spare parts to Iran.
Iran is currently cooperating with Ukraine and Russia in the production and operation of the Antonov-140 airliner, which can carry 52 passengers.
After purchasing the production license for the An-140 from Ukraine in 2000, Iran built its first Iran-140 passenger plane in 2003.
While the US and some other western governments say that they have imposed sanctions on Iran to curb its nuclear program, the ban on the purchase of civil aircraft and spare parts give the lie to such claims and prove that the Iranian nation have been the main target of such sanctions, as many of them have been in effect for more than three decades, long before Iran had a viable civilian nuclear energy program.
