TEHERAN, Iran - Iran has increasingly turned to Russia to replace its aging US and European-made airliners, a response to US sanctions that affect the countryÂ’s aviation industry, the official IRNA news agency reported Monday.Aviation chief Saeed Hesami said Russian planes were IranÂ’s best option, according to IRNA, despite a string of crashes in recent years involving Russian-made aircraft that have killed hundreds of people. 'We have no option but to buy Russian planes because we have to meet the air transportation needs of the nation,Â’ Hesami was quoted as saying by IRNA. 'Iran wonÂ’t allow ... US sanctions to ground its aviation fleet.Â’
US sanctions ban the export of advanced technology to Iran, including spare parts for its fleet of U.S.-built Boeing aircraft. Pressure from Washington has also limited the transfer of equipment for IranÂ’s European-made Airbus planes. In 2002, IranÂ’s transportation minister at the time, Ahmad Khorram, told parliament that IranÂ’s air industry had reached a crisis pointÂ’ and was suffering from US sanctions.
Iran has sought to purchase new aircraft from Boeing and Airbus in recent years, but has been rebuffed, leading the Islamic Republic to buy or lease jets from Russia. Last month, Teheran finalized the purchase of five Tupolov-204 planes, which Hesami said were more advanced than the Tupolov-154 aircraft currently owned by Iran.
| Because nothing screams quality flying like Tupolov. |