IRAN AIR

() is the flag carrier airline of Iran, based in Tehran. It operates services to 20 scheduled and 5 charter destinations. The cargo fleet operates services to 35 international and 25 domestic destinations. Its main base is Mehrabad International Airport, Tehran.^[1]
Its acronym Homa () is derived from two sources: the initial letters of the name in ''Havapeyma'i-ye Melli-ye Iran''; and from Homa, a griffin of Persian mythology.

Contents

History

Formation

Golden Age

After the Islamic Revolution

Iran Air Family

Iran Air Tours

Services

Hajj and Umrah Operations

Destinations

Fleet

Fleet modernisation

Previously operated

Livery

Trivia

Incidents and accidents

External links

References

History

Formation

In 1946 , a group of businessmen founded Iran's first flag carrier under the name of 'Iranian Airways'. Operations covered domestic and regional passenger and freight services plus a weekly freight service to Europe. The fleet consisted of Douglas DC-3s initially, supplemented by Douglas DC-4 and Vickers Viscount aircraft later on. In 1954 , the privately owned airline 'Persian Air Services' (PAS) was established, which initially operated only freight services, followed by passenger operations between Tehran and major cities in Iran. In 1960 , PAS initiated service to several European destinations, including Geneva, Paris, Brussels and London, using Douglas DC-7C aircraft leased from Sabena.
On 24 February 1962, Iranian Airways and PAS were merged to form 'Iran National Airlines Corporation', known as Iran Air. It was as a public sector venture that combined the assets and liabilities of the two predecessor air carriers. Among the aircraft used were Avro York, Douglas DC-3, Douglas DC-6 and Vickers Viscount. The carrier became a full member of IATA in 1964.

Golden Age

In 1965 , Iran Air took delivery of its first jet aircraft, the Boeing 727-100, followed by the Boeing 737-200 in 1971 , the stretched Boeing 727-200 in 1974 , and three variants of Boeing 747s (747-100, -200 and SP) starting in 1975 . By the mid-1970s, Iran Air was serving numerous key cities in Europe with non-stop and one-stop flights (there were over 30 flights per week to London alone).
On 8 October 1972, Iran Air placed an order with British Aircraft Corporation for two Concorde supersonic jets plus 1 option. These orders were cancelled in April 1980 in the wake of Iran's Islamic Revolution, making Iran Air the very last airline to cancel its Concorde orders.

On 29 May 1975, the route was inaugurated with Boeing 707s, followed by the use of Boeing 747 and 747SP aircraft later on. In 1978 , the airline acquired six Airbus A300B4 aircraft for use on its domestic trunk and busy regional routes. By the end of that year, Iran Air was serving thirty-one international destinations stretching from New York City to Beijing and Tokyo. Plans were made at that time to offer direct services to Los Angeles and to Sydney, for which the airline's long range 747SP aircraft were ideally suited. This would have allowed Iran Air to use Tehran as a convenient midway point between East and West because of its home base's favourable geographical location. Such plans were never realized.
By the late 1970s, Iran Air was the fastest growing airline in the world, and one of the most profitable. By 1976 , Iran Air was ranked second only to Qantas as the world’s safest airline, having been accident free for at least 10 consecutive years. Although both airlines were accident free, Iran Air came second only because of fewer operational hours flown compared to Qantas. Prior to this ranking, a fatal accident occurred on 25 December 1952, in which 27 of the 29 passengers onboard perished when their Douglas DC-3 crashed on landing.

After the Islamic Revolution

In the wake of Iran's Islamic Revolution, Iran Air began to reorganize its international operations as of 26 February 1979, discontinuing service to a range of foreign destinations. Tehran was designated as the only official gateway to Iran, while Shiraz could be used as an alternate only in case of operational requirements. All other cities in Iran lost their international status.
The last departure from New York was on 7 November 1979. The last scheduled flight from Tehran to New York City on 8 November 1979 was diverted at the last minute to Montreal, prompted by an embargo suddenly imposed by the US government. Subsequently, the Boeing 747SPs became extensively used on the airline's European and Asian routes. In 1980 , the first of six new Airbus A300-B2K joined the fleet.
After the start of the Iran-Iraq War in September 1980 , Iran Air's domestic and international operations were often subject to cancellation and irregularity in line with the changing wartime situation. This continued until August 1988 when a cease-fire agreement took effect. Right from the start of the Iran-Iraq War, Abadan - gateway to Iran's oil-producing region - lost all its air links because the airport had to be closed down.
1981 saw the official name of the airline changed to 'The Airline of the Islamic Republic of Iran'. Iran Air carried 1.7 million passengers in that year. In 1990 , the first of six Fokker 100 jets was added to the fleet, and five more units joined later on. In 2001 , the airline bought six second-hand Airbus A310 aircraft (five -200 and one -300 series) since the US authorities blocked the planned purchase of new Airbus A330 units. In 2005 , the carrier bought another two ex-Olympic Airlines Airbus A300-600s. In the wake of the growing tension between the US and Iranian governments over Iran's nuclear programme, the plan to supply Boeing spare parts or aircraft to upgrade the aging fleet of Iran Air was blocked by the USA and members of the EU. However a new agreement between Iran and the United States at the end of 2006 has changed that and allowed an overhaul of Iran Air's fleet.^[2]
The airline is wholly owned by the Government of Iran and has 7,500 employees (at March 2007).

Iran Air Family

Iran Air Tours

'Iran Air Tours' is a low cost airline based at Mashhad International Airport (MHD), and is a subsidiary of Iran Air. At the time,Soviet-design Tu-154M jets are the backbone of this airline in use but recentley this airline accuired a number of airbus A300B4 and MD-83 aircrafts on lease and of course in hybrid livery from turkey and increased it's flights to domestic cities like Mashhad, Zahedan, Ahwaz and...
Iran Air Tours initiated ''scheduled'' operations only in 1990, taking over the bulk of domestic services formerly operated by Iran Air.
Iran Air Tours has been responsible for the remarkable build-up of a very extensive route network focused on the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad, home to Shi'ite Muslims' holiest shrine. Reservations for Iran Air Tours flights can be made via the Iran Air system, which is the only widely available airline reservations system in Iran.
The carrier also operates charter flights reaching as far as Northern Europe.
=== Homa Hotel Group ===
'Homa Hotel Group' is a subsidiary company of Iran Air, which owns a chain of five star hotels in major cities of Iran. These Homa hotels are located in Tehran, Shiraz, Bandar Abbas and Mashad (two hotels). All the hotels were constructed prior to 1979 with the exception of the second Mashad hotel built in the late 1990s.
The hotel group was established by the government after the 1979 Iranian revolution and has more than 800 furnished rooms. Most of the hotels were under private control prior to 1979 but were nationalized soon after. The most famous of these was the Homa Hotel Tehran which used to be the luxurious Tehran Sheraton prior to being nationalised in 1979. While the hotels are rated five-star, the facilities, decor and service are not quite up to five-star international standards.

Services

Hajj and Umrah Operations

Special Hajj charter operations form a major part of Iran Air's annual activities, and play an important role for religious, national, financial and professional reasons. Every year, tens of thousands of pilgrims fly from major cities in Iran to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia's important aerial gateway to Mecca, to take part in pilgrimage ceremonies. These special Hajj charter flights are arranged in such a way that pilgrims spend a minimum time in Saudi Arabia to perform their religious duties before returning home.
In the year 2001, Iran Air carried around 60,000 pilgrims to / from Jeddah within a span of 40 days. 352 Hajj charter flights were operated from / to 17 different cities in Iran, an achievement that was very remarkable in that these flights were operated in addition to the other daily Iran Air scheduled service commitments.
Iran Air also operates special charter flights from cities in Iran to Jeddah during the Umrah season. In order to deal with the operational requirements and to meet traffic demand, the airline leases aircraft including Boeing 747-200s and Airbus A300B2s .

Destinations

See: ''Iran Air destinations''

Fleet

Iran Air Boeing 747-100

Iran Air Boeing 747 over Hamburg, Germany

The Iran Air fleet includes the following aircraft (as of July 2007)

'Iran Air Fleet'

Aircraft	Total	Passengers	Routes	Notes
Airbus 300-600R	4	261	International
Airbus 300B2	4	277	Domestic, International
Airbus 310-200	6	215	International
Airbus 310-300	2	167-203	Domestic, International
Airbus 340-200	1	261	International	Leased from Conviasa
Boeing 727-200	4	154	Domestic, International
Boeing 747-100B	1	449	International
Boeing 747-200B	6	449	International	3 new 742's added as August 2007
Boeing 747-SP	2	305	International
Fokker 100	18	104	Domestic, International
Boeing 747-100F	7	Cargo		all of them transferred to IRAF
Boeing 747-200F	1	Cargo		all of them transferred to IRAF
Total	48

★ The average Iran Air fleet age is 19.6 years old as of May 2007.^[3]

★ Due to the sanctions imposed by the US government, all Iranian airlines wishing to purchase US made aircraft can only acquire airplanes which are at least 7 years old, and they only can be purchased through a third party instead of direct purchase from Boeing.

★ The amount of US made parts contained on Airbus aircraft means that its also not possible for an Iranian airline to purchase aircraft directly from Airbus.

★ In August 2007, the airline announced to ordered 18 Tupolev204-100

★ On the 20 December 2006, Iran Air put back into operation one of its Boeing 747-SP aircraft that had been out of operation for many years, after it went through a major overhaul by the local Fajr Shiyan company. Several other 747s that are currently in storage, may now also go through the same overhaul procedure and be put back into active use by Iran Air once again. The airline is to lease a number of Airbus A340-212 aircraft from Conviasa.

★ On 14 August 2007 it was reported^[4] that Iran Air had overcome sanctions imposed by the west and that their fleet of A310s are ready to resume service.

★ Iran Air is operating a former Qantas Boeing 747-238B.

Fleet modernisation

★ Iran Air is to begin a partial modernisation program of its own fleet and subsidiary Iran Air Tours using new-generation Russian aircraft. Five Tupolev Tu-204-100s will be acquired for Iran Air Tours, while two Ilyushin Il-96-300s will be taken on short-term lease for the airline’s mainline fleet, which could potentially lead to an order for four aircraft. The Tu-204 deal has been disclosed by Moscow-based lessor Ilyushin Finance (IFC), which said that the firm contract would be signed by 15 December 2006 with the deal also including five options. Iran Air expects the five firmly ordered twinjets to be delivered to Iran Air Tours in the second half of 2008 at a rate of one aircraft per month.

★ Iran Air will take two Ilyushin Il-96-300s on short-term leases on from Russia’s Kras Air in October 2006 and will use these aircraft on a trial basis for up to one year. If they meet its operational requirements, IFC will consider placing an order for a batch of three or four aircraft. Iran Air has also displayed a keen interest in the Sukhoi Superjet 100 and wants to take an in-depth look at the type closer to its roll-out in 2008.

★ On July 12 2007 Iran Air leased an Airbus A340-200 from Venezuela

★ At August 2007, the airline purchased 4 Fokker 100 from TAM air lines

Previously operated

★ At August 2006 the airline also operated^[5] :

★
★ 5 Airbus 310-200

★
★ 7 Fokker 100

★ At December 2005 the airline also operated:

★
★ 2 Airbus A300B4

★
★ Tupolev Tu-154
Iran Air have retired some of their 747SP, 747-100B and 747-200B. The 737-200s and 707s were retired in the mid 1990s.

Livery

The airline's livery is an all white fuselage, with Iran Air in dark, block letters above the passenger windows, and a dark blue drawing of Homa on the tail, with a shade of dark-blue over it.

Trivia

★ As Iran is an Islamic society, Iran Air does not serve alcohol on board its flights and all meals served are halal.

★ All Iran Air flights are non-smoking.

★ All international flights offer areas for prayer.

★ Iran Air was the sponsor of the Iranian football team in 1978 FIFA World Cup.

★ Iran Air was the sponsor of the Iranian national teams in 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.

★ Homa Class is Iran Air's executive class. It offers wider seats and upgraded food selection. Among the offerings is beluga caviar to passengers from Japan and the UK.

★ Footage of an Iran Air 747 landing was used in the 2006 film The Marine.

★ Iran Air, along with Saudi Arabian Airlines, are the only remaining operators of the Boeing 747-100B.

★ Iran Air is ranked as a 2 star airline according to Skytrax.

Incidents and accidents

The USS ''Vincennes'' shot down an Iran Air passenger aircraft similar to this Iran Air Airbus, killing all 290 passengers including 66 children and crew on board.

★ December 25, 1952; Iran Air Douglas DC-3; Tehran, Iran: 27 fatalities and two survivors

★ January 21, 1980; Iran Air Boeing 727-86; near Tehran, Iran: The aircraft hit high ground in a snowstorm during the approach to land. All eight crew members and 120 passengers were killed.

★ On 3 July, 1988, Iran Air Flight 655 was flying over the Persian Gulf on its way to Dubai from Bandar Abbas. The ''USS Vincennes'', a U.S. Navy cruiser equipped with the most sophisticated radar and electronic battle gear, mistook the airliner for an Iranian F-14 Tomcat. At the time, there were Iranian attacks on neutral shipping and the U.S. Navy had naval engagements with Iran. When the aircrew failed to respond to a message on a channel they were not supposed to be monitoring, the cruiser shot the airliner down with a missile killing all 16 crew and 274 passengers. The United States called the incident a tragic mistake. ''Newsweek'' published a long article that largely blamed Capt. Will Rogers, the ''Vincennes’'' commander.^[6]

External links

★ Iran Air

★ Iran Air Cargo

★ Iran Air Tours

★ Homa Hotel Group

★ Iran Air Fleet Detail

★ Iran Air Photos
Regional Iran Air websites:

★ Iran Air UK - Information for flights to the UK and North America

★ Iran Air Germany - In German and English

★ Iran Air Scandinavian - In Sweden - In Persian and English

★ Iran Air Russia - In Russian

★ Iran Air Austria - In German

★ Iran Air Netherlands - In English

★ Iran Air Italy - In Italian

★ Iran Air East Asia - In Japanese and Korean
Historical reviews:
For a complete history of the airline see:

★ The Evolution of the Iranian Airlines Industry, by Abbas Atrvash.

References

1. Directory: World Airlines
2. Iran/USA agreement
3. Airfleets.net http://www.airfleets.net/ageflotte/Iran%20Air.htm
4. Iran Air ready to resume flying A310s Flight Global, 14/08/07
5. Flight International, 3-9 October 2006
6. Sea of Lies John Barry