The U.S. Treasury Department has issued licenses to
Boeing and Airbus for the sale of planes to Iran Air.
The move comes in the
wake of the U.S. lifting some sanctions against Iran as part of the
landmark 2015 nuclear deal reached between Iran, the U.S. and five other
countries.
In June, Boeing entered into a memorandum of agreement with Iran
Air for the sale of 80 aircraft. The Treasury license, Boeing said in a
statement, would allow it to complete those sales.
Airbus said its license would apply to only a portion of the 118
aircraft it plans to deliver to Iran Air as part of a January agreement. The
approved craft are A320s and A330s. Airbus said it expects approval of all its
planned Iran Air deliveries in the coming weeks.
The Treasury Department approvals came in spite of two measures
passed by House Republicans in July that sought to prevent Boeing from selling
planes to Iran Air. Advocates of the measures expressed concern that Iran could
put the aircraft to use for the transport of military cargo.
“These licenses contain strict conditions to ensure that the
planes will be used exclusively for commercial passenger use and cannot be
resold or transferred to a designated entity,” a Treasury spokesperson said in
an email to Travel Weekly.