Kish Air is planning to buy ten new airplanes to renovate its aging fleet, according to Ali Asghar Mounesan, chief executive of the Kish Free Zone Organization, which is a majority shareholder of the airline.
“The economic sanctions made it difficult for us to buy new aircraft to renovate our fleet,” he said at a meeting on aviation safety on Saturday on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf, adding that with the removal of the international sanctions, the airline can finally develop its fleet.
Economic sanctions imposed on Iran by the US, European Union and United Nations were lifted last week, following Tehran’s fulfillment of its obligations outlined in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — the official name of the nuclear deal signed between Iran and the six world powers (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) last July.
Mounesan said the airline has the financial means to buy the ten planes, but did not say when they are planning to order the new aircraft and from which manufacturer.
The Iranian government is reportedly set to sign a contract this week to buy 114 Airbus planes from France, during a visit to Paris by President Hassan Rouhani, Transport Minister Abbas Akhoundi said Sunday.
Iran is under pressure to modernize its ageing passenger fleet, which has only 150 operational planes out of more than 250.
