MANAMA November 15 (Sputnik) – The Russian company Sukhoi Civil Aircraft will return back to the issue of supplies of Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ100) jets to Iran after the share of US components in the plane sinks to less than 10 percent, the firm’s president, Alexander Rubtsov, said on Thursday.
The two countries signed memorandums of understanding in April on the sale of 40 SSJ-100s by 2022 but the US decision to re-impose sanctions on Iran made it hard for Russia to obtain US-made components for the jets. On October 23, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanaei said that Iran was not losing a hope to buy the SSJ-100 planes.
“We have firmly decided to deny supplies of jets to Iran under the current circumstances when 22 percent of the [jet’s] equipment is produced in the United States … When we reach the level of less than 10 percent, we will return back to this issue,” Rubtsov said at a press conference during the BIAS-2018 airshow in Bahrain.
The SSJ100 is a twin-engine plane made by Russia’s Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company. It can carry up to 98 passengers and fly at a distance of up to 2,470 miles. The jet made its maiden flight in May 2008.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
