Iran to unveil new home-made plane

"The new model of Iran-140 planes for sea patrolling will be unveiled in Isfahan on April 30," Former Head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization Reza Nakhjavani announced on Saturday, addressing a ceremony to introduce his successor in CAO. He also said that Iran has received the necessary license and certificates for using the Iran-140 plane. The first IRAN-140 aircraft was introduced by Iran in 2003. Five domestically-manufactured IRAN-140 planes were completed in October 2008 to increase the country's transportation capacity and upgrade the Iranian passenger fleet. The IRAN-140 is a double-engine turboprop aircraft which can fly almost 1,865 miles before re-fuelling and seats 52 people. Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi had announced in 2010 that his ministry is ready to mass-produce the home-made IRAN-140 passenger and cargo planes. "Once the Roads and Transportation Ministry makes the decision for purchasing such airplanes from the Defense Ministry, the Ministry is fully prepared to manufacture them," Vahidi told FNA at the time. Iran has already manufactured 10 IRAN-140 planes. The Defense Ministry is ready to mass-produce the airplane on demand, Vahidi said, reminding that the aircraft which can be used as a 52-seater passenger plane is also good for cargo transportation and marine patrolling. The head of Iran's Aerospatiale Industries Organization (AIO), Majid Hedayat, said in 2008 that the aircraft would be equipped with the needed technology for undertaking marine patrol missions.