Baku, Azerbaijan, June 6
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The SSJ100 aircraft supplied by Russian Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC) to Iran is absolutely safe, deputy director for communication at SCAC Marina Motornaya told Trend.
"It has been certified by Russian, European and other national aviation authorities," she said.
Earlier, an Iranian lawmaker Seyed Ahsan Alavi called on the government to avoid buying Sukhoi civil aircraft as the Russian-made planes continue to take toll on its passengers, killing tens time by time.
In a rare warning on June 3, Seyed Ahsan Alavi said, "Purchasing or not purchasing planes from Russia should not overshadow Iran-Russia’s good relations as the lives of people are more important than any kind of relationship," Tasnim news agency reported.
The remarks came after a Russian aircraft maker announced recently that it was exploring plans to make a modified version of its Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional airliner so Iranian airlines can buy the jet after US President Donald Trump said it was walking away from the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.
Motornaya noted that SCAC is consistently developing the SSJ100 project and is focused on expanding its sales markets.
"Therefore, the SCAC began to develop SSJ100R, a new version of the aircraft, in which a number of aircraft systems will be updated. Russian developers and manufacturers have already been invited to participate in this project. It is planned to significantly increase the number of Russian components," she said.
Motornaya pointed out that the delivery of SSJ100R to the first customers is scheduled for 2020.
Motornaya noted that in accordance with the world practice, the operation of new types of aircraft - new for a given market - is possible after the country's aviation authorities confirm the compliance of the aircraft with the requirements for passenger aircraft adopted in the country.
"This means that SSJ100 aircraft must be certified by the Iranian aviation authorities, which will allow the delivery of this type of aircraft to Iranian airlines. This practice is valid for all markets for which aircraft are supplied or planned to be delivered, "she said.
She recalled that on April 25, 2018, SCAC signed memorandums of understanding with Iran Aseman and Iran Airtour on the supply of 20 aircraft to each airline in the version with the increased Russian component since 2020.
Motornaya noted that work is currently underway on memorandums signed in April with Iranian airlines, with a view to developing them into firm contracts.
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