President of United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) Yuri Slusar believes that ease of sanctions on Iran may help resume talks on deliveries of Tu-204SM aircraft to Iran (as well as assembly and customization of these aircraft in Iran). It was stated at the second congress of Russian aircraft manufacturers held in Ulyanovsk, Kommersant reports.

«We are discussing the matter and we hope that advantages of this technological cooperation and possibility of decreasing dependence from imported vehicles are still attractive for Iran. We are going to continue this work,» UAC President said. He explained “this refers to deliveries with the further possibility of launching assembly and customization of the jets as well as production of some components at the Isfahan-based aviation plant.

Earlier it was impossible to deliver the aircraft to Iran, because Pratt & Whitney, which took part in development of PS-90A2 engine for Tu-204SM, blocked deliveries of these jets to Iran in 2010 due to sanctions imposed against the country.

Slusar also said that UAC “hopes that ruble’s depreciation increases the cost advantage of Tu-204 jets»; this may lead to increase of the output to “4 or 5 aircraft per year”.