The Chairman of IranAir, the civil airline company of the Islamic Republic, took delivery in France of the first Western airliner, Airbus, calling it a “sunny day” for relations between Iran and Europe. The delivery of the 189-seat plane, already painted in IranAir’s livery, is the first of 100 ordered from Airbus, following a deal reached in July of 2015 between the Islamic Republic and the P5+1 – the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain plus Germany – to lift crippling economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on the country’s nuclear activities. The airline has also ordered 80 aircraft from Boeing. Highlighting Iran’s emergence from years of international isolation, the Airbus delivery marks the first brand-new jet directly acquired from a Western manufacturer for decades.
