Boeing reports first aircraft-related goods sales to Iran since 1979

Boeing said on Wednesday that it had sold aircraft-related goods to Iran Air in the third quarter, marking the first acknowledged dealings between US aerospace companies and Iran since the 1979 US hostage crisis.

The Chicago-based aerospace and defense company said in a filing that it sold aircraft manuals, drawings, navigation charts and data to Iran Air to help improve the safety of Iran's civil aviation industry.

The sales generated $120,000 in revenue, Boeing said, ending a 35-year break in business between the two air companies that was prohibited under decades of US sanctions.

The sales did not include spare parts for aircraft, which were thought to be likely since Iran Air's fleet of planes includes vintage Boeing and Airbus jetliners delivered as long ago as 1978.

The sales earned Boeing $12,000 in gross profits, according to Boeing's quarterly report.

In April, the US government issued a license allowing Boeing, for a "limited period of time", to provide "spare parts that are for safety purposes" to Iran. Boeing is still not allowed to sell new planes to Iran.

The license was granted by the US Treasury Department in the context of an interim deal between world powers and Iran over its nuclear program signed in November.

Boeing said the parts were purchased "consistent with guidance from the US government in connection with ongoing negotiations".

The US company said more parts could be sold to Iran Air in the future.

"We may engage in additional sales pursuant to this license," it said.

Other US companies have said they want to conduct business with Iran under the sanctions ease, including General Electric, which in February requested permission to sell spare airliner parts to Iran.

Washington severed diplomatic relations with Iran in the aftermath of the 1979 Islamic revolution.

The United States and European nations have imposed severe economic sanctions on Iran in recent years, aiming to pressure Teheran to dramatically reduce its nuclear program for a lengthy period of time to keep it from developing nuclear weapons.

Iran has steadfastly insisted its nuclear program is for civilian purposes.

AP - Reuters

(China Daily 10/24/2014 page11)