Airbus, a European consortium, needed US government approval to sell aircraft to Iran because many parts are made in the USA and the American authorities want to ensure the country doesn’t use the planes for military purposes.
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Although Airbus is a French company, it needed the U.S. Treasury Department to sign off before the deal for 118 planes could go through because they contain American parts.
Boeing, a Chicago-based manufacturer, has also received a license to sell 80 planes to Iran, the company told USA TODAY in a statement Wednesday.
The Treasury Department approved the transfer of 17 Airbus airplanes to Iran Air for a list-price value of $27 billion, and some of those deliveries may occur as early as this year, according to the WSJ.
Boeing and Airbus have agreed to sell or lease more than 100 aircraft each to Iran’s national airline, IranAir, following last year’s nuclear agreement between Iran, the USA, and five other world powers.
Although a European company, Airbus needs US approval for the sale because so many USA -made parts are in its jets.
The deals are also likely to “test conservative opposition” to the nuclear agreement in both the US and Iran, as Reuters reported.
Boeing will sell 80 planes to Iran Air, the country’s national commercial carrier, a company spokesman said.
Base model A320s are now listed at an average of $98 million, while A330s start at $231.5 million.
“We expect the second license to be granted in the coming weeks”, the spokesman added. The Boeing sales would be the first from a USA aviation company to an Iranian entity since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Airbus’ announcements will be closely watched by Boeing, which has its own deal on the line.
This approval, which is in the form of a license, concerns an order of $25 billion made by Iran Air aircraft to manufacturer in June.
Many sanctions against Iran still remain. Out of Iran’s 250 commercial planes, 162 were flying in June, while the rest were grounded due to lack of spare parts.
Separately, Franco-Italian turboprop maker ATR continues to wait for its OFAC license to proceed with the sale of 20 ATR 72-600s to Iran Air.
Boeing’s deal with Iran drew scorn from some on Capitol Hill. However, the Boeing deal has been criticized by both American lawmakers and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
The aircraft deal also has become a political issue in an election year in the US.
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