Iran is looking to establish a production line and build a 100-seat commercial passenger plane, according to Touraj Dehqani Zanganeh, the head of the country’s Civil Aviation Organization. What else do we know? Let’s investigate further.

A new Iranian plane

Sanctions prohibit the proper replacement of aircraft in Iran, which is why Iranian airlines usually operate older aircraft like the Airbus A300, Fokker 100s, MD-80s, and other avgeek-favorites.

To battle this shortage of new aircraft, Iran may be eyeing the development of a new 100-seat commercial passenger plane, as reported by the Tehran Times.

There’s a Memorandum of Understanding between Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization, Ministry of Defense, and the Transport and Urban Development Ministry, according to Dehqani.

He added,

“We have planned to build 70- and 100-seat aircraft inside the country, and [in this regard] we signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Defense to be able to use the country’s existing military capabilities for the construction of commercial aircraft.”

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Iran needs more than 500 aircraft to replace its current fleet and grow. Photo: Getty Images.

Iran’s needs

According to data provided by ch-aviation, there are 386 aircraft from several carriers in Iran at the moment. Nearly 40% of the whole Iranian fleet is grounded for several reasons. Only 140 aircraft are currently active.

This summer, Iran’s domestic market has 12.4 million, according to OAG schedules information. The MD-82 is by far the leading aircraft domestically in the country, followed by the Fokker 100.

In 2018, Iran needed approximately 500 aircraft to replace its existing fleet and grow over the next ten years. Nonetheless, the sanctions on the Iranian regime have made this almost impossible, so having an own aircraft could heavily help the local carriers. According to Dehqani, the Advanced Aviation and Transportation Technology will also help in the development of the new plane, which is only at the primary studies stage.

“There are a lot of knowledge-based companies established in the country that have great potentials; Mapna, and another company are currently building gas turbines, and we are helping them to build aircraft engines,” Dehqani added.

Developing a passenger plane can be extremely expensive. For instance, Canada’s Bombardier spent around US$6 billion developing its C-Series plane (currently the Airbus A220).

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In the past, Iran developed the IrAn-140 based on the Antonov-140. Photo: Dmitry A. Mottl via Wikimedia Commons.

Not the first time Iran has built an aircraft

In the past, Iran has had a commercial aircraft production company. We are talking about the Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company (HESA), which was established in 1976.

This company mainly developed helicopters in the past, although it produced the IrAn-140 aircraft based on the original Antonov-140. Back then, Ukraine and Iran collaborated in the development of the plane. The aircraft was a failure.

The first IrAn-140 made its maiden flight in 2001. Iran Aircraft Manufacturing only ever built 14 complete airframes, although the aircraft was sold to the public as the country’s symbol of the aviation industry.

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Between 2005 and 2009, there were two accidents onboard IrAn-140 aircraft, leaving a toll of five deceased people.

Only one airline ever operated the aircraft, Sepahan Airlines (although this carrier was owned by HESA). In 2014, one of the six Sepahan Airlines’ IrAn-140 was involved in a fatal crash with 40 casualties. Since then, the model has not flown again, and HESA is heavily sanctioned as most Iranian-state companies.

The Iranian regime still produces fighter jets, like the HESA Kowsar Jets, although they are heavily based on vintage US airframes showcasing a largely antiquated industry.

Do you think Iran will be able to produce a successful aircraft family? Let us know in the comments below.