Iran Air has officially taken delivery of its very first Airbus A330-200 (EP-IJA) aircraft. It was handed over today by Airbus at the delivery centre in Toulouse and is expected to arrive at Tehran-Mehrabad Airport during tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, a second A330-200 (EP-IJB) has arrived in Toulouse, most likely to join IranAir’s fleet within the next few coming days as previously announced.

The delivery of the aircraft is part of IranAir’s major fleet renewal plan and is the first wide body from a firm order placed by the national carrier of Iran in December 2016 for 100 Airbus aircraft to renew and expand its fleet with new aircraft. The new A330 fleet will expand the long-haul network with planned resumptions to destinations such as Kuala Lumpur and Beijing, however, it will initially be deployed on existing European routes.

Iran Air’s A330-200 features a two class cabin layout, seating 32 passengers in business and 206 in economy.

This evening, IranAir officially announced that the aircraft will be delivered on Saturday, 11 March 2017. It will depart Toulouse-Blagnac Airport at 01:30 CET to arrive at around 09:00 IRST to Tehran-Mehrabad Airport. It will directly taxi to the iconic “Enghelab Hangar”, the same place were the very first Airbus A321 was welcomed in January 2017.

In addition to IranAir’s 100 Airbus aircraft order, the national carrier plans to take delivery of 80 Boeing and 20 ATR 72-600 aircraft. The first Boeing aircraft is expected to arrive in Iran by April 2018 and the ATR aircraft will not be delivered prior to March 2017 as previously expected, due to a dispute with the Canadian engine manufacturer.

Photo: P. Masclet, Airbus