Iran holds negotiations to buy 20 planes from Japan

Iranian Deputy Minister of Road and Urban Development Asghar Fakhriyeh Kashan said the country is in negotiations with Japanese industrial giant Mitsubishi to purchase 20 Mitsubishi Regional Jets (MRJs), Tasnim reports.

Given Iran’s need to small aircraft, the country has held talks with Japan to buy 20 MRJs under a finance lease agreement, Fakhriyeh Kashan said on Saturday.

The Japanese side has pledged that they will consider Iran’s request for the planes and establish the second joint work group to discuss the issue in December, he added.

Back in February, Iran’s national airline, Iran Air, finalized a contract with ATR, a joint venture of Airbus and Finmeccanica of Italy, to purchase 20 turboprops.

The deal followed a contract between Iran and Airbus on a major order, which includes dozens of Airbus’s biggest-selling jets.

Iran has agreed to buy 118 Airbus jets, including 45 A320 single-aisle aircraft, 45 A330 wide-bodies, 16 A350 twin-aisle aircraft, and 12 A380’s.