Iran’s flag carrier posted a picture on Twitter of five new ATR 72-600 planes outside the factory where they are built in Toulouse, France, and said they would soon arrive in Tehran.
IranAir chief executive Farzaneh Sharafbafi was in Toulouse to receive the new planes, Iranian news agency IRNA said.
ATR — co-owned by Airbus and Italy’s Leonardo — has been pressing US authorities to allow it to deliver aircraft it built for Iran under a deal to reopen trade links in return for Tehran curbing its nuclear activities. In the wake of that deal, IranAir ordered a total of 200 aircraft from Western planemakers including 20 from ATR.
But few have been delivered and US President Donald Trump’s decision in May to pull the United States out of the nuclear deal gives most companies until mid-August to complete ongoing business with Iran before new US sanctions apply.
Planemakers say they are unable to use this window because Washington has also revoked export licences needed by all Western planemakers due to their heavy use of US parts.
ATR — which had delivered 8 planes to Iran under the deal and started building another 12 — has been lobbying the US Treasury to allow it to take advantage of the normal wind-down period for Iran business by giving it temporary new licences.
ATR declined to comment. Industry sources said the final number of planes to be delivered would be known in coming days.