Talks Continued to Remove US Sanctions on Iranian Aviation

TEHRAN (Fars News Agency)- Talks are continued by Iran’s Aviation Organization and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to remove US sanctions on Iranian aviation industry, head of IAO said.

Speaking on the sidelines of a ceremony here on Saturday to mark the World Civil Aviation Day, Hossein Khanlari told reporters that following the official announcement by Washington about the annulment of US sanctions on Iranian aviation industry, IAO officials sought to put the issue into effect through their serious follow-ups at ICAO’s general assembly meetings.

“Subsequent to these efforts, the issue was put on ICAO’s working agenda,” he added.

He said that Iran’s permanent envoys to ICAO are pursuing the issue, and continued, “ICAO’s President Gonzales has ordered the executive and economic committees of the world body to study Iran’s request.”

Khanlari said that Iran is now in talks with a second country to supply its needed parts.

Russia and Ukraine have been leading suppliers to Iran Air. Britain and France have already been selling aircraft and engine parts to Iran.

Despite an official announcement by the US administration last year that it was planning to sell aircraft parts to the Islamic Republic in a bid to improve aviation safety, the announcement remained at the level of words and was never put into effect.

The Bush administration said last October that it had notified the Congress that the United States would export parts for US-origin aircraft to Iran. Officials even said that State and Commerce have designated a company for the aircraft spare parts export license.

US officials said that the recommendation had been relayed to the Treasury Department, which bans all transactions with Iran, adding that the State Department and Commerce Department had both recommended such a move in an effort to improve Iranian air safety.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the license, approved on Sept. 29, would enable the export of spare and replacement parts and technical data for the repair and overhaul of a “limited number” of US-made turbine engines on Airbus aircraft. McCormack said those aircrafts had been operated by Iran Air.

“The [State] Department’s recommendation is based on an airworthiness warning issued by the Federal Aviation Administration that calls for the immediate overhaul of these engines,” McCormack said last October.

Under the recommendation, the airplane engine parts would not be shipped to Iran. Instead, the components would be exported to unidentified third countries, which would conduct the repairs for Iran Air.

Officials did not identify the third countries.