The Iranian cabinet on Sunday appointed Davoud Keshavarzian as the new head of the country's state carrier Iran Air, press reports said Monday.
Keshavarzian, former governor of the northern Mazandaran province, replaces Ahmad-Reza Kazemi after four years.
State-run Iran Air has a fleet of some 30 aircraft, most of which are Boeings purchased before the 1979 Islamic revolution.
For several months now Iran Air officials have been stressing the need to renew the ageing fleet, suffering from lack of maintenance because of unilateral US sanctions which bar Tehran from buying new aircraft from US manufacturer Boeing.
Late last year, Iran Air announced Iran would buy an additional four A-330 jets from European maker Airbus in 2001, in addition to four ordered the previous year. The total value of the deal is estimated at $720 million.
Industries Minister Gholamreza Shafei said in December that Iran Air alone would need seven billion dollars to purchase new planes and refurbish its old ones. — (AFP, Tehran)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
