Iran may not receive Russia’s Sukhoi SuperJet 100 airliners to boost its ageing air fleet due to US trade restrictions. The jets reportedly have more U.S.-made parts than are allowed for export without Washington’s approval.
“However, it appears that due to the lack of license issued by OFAC (the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control), the arrival of the planes is out of the question for now,” Maqsoud Asadi Samani, who serves as the secretary of the Association of Iranian Airlines, told Iranian Labor New Agency (ILNA).
He was reportedly speaking about the purchase of 20 planes for Iran Air Tours, a subsidiary of national flag carrier IranAir, as well as a leasing deal drafted by “another Iranian airline,” according to the agency. The official did not mention Aseman Airlines, which ordered another 20 jets from Russia.
Earlier, Russia and Iran sealed a deal for the delivery of 40 new twin-engine regional passenger aircraft of the latest version, Sukhoi Superjet 100R, for two Iranian airlines. The deal is believed to be worth $2 billion and an even more ambitious agreement for 100 planes was being considered.
The problem is that more than 10% of the aircrafts’ components are U.S.-produced, which means that approval from Washington is required, ILNA reported.
When contacted by Sputnik, Sukhoi said that it was too early to have regrets about Iran not getting the jets. “We have not received an answer – either a positive or a negative one” from the US regarding the approval for the deal, the company’s press-service said.
