by Donald Wood
Last updated: 12:00 PM ET, Tue December 13, 2016
On Sunday, airplane manufacturer Boeing announced that it had reached an agreement with Iran Air for the purchase and delivery of 80 aircraft valued at $16.6 billion at current list prices.
The contract between Boeing and Iran Air was approved by the United States Government following the Memorandum of Agreement in June and the license issued to Boeing in September.
The order is for 80 total airplanes, including 50 Boeing 737 MAX 8s, 15 Boeing 777-300ERs and 15 Boeing 777-9s. The production of the planes is expected to support nearly 100,000 jobs in the United States over the course of the deliveries.
The first airplane from the deal between Boeing and Iran Air is expected to be delivered in 2018.
Part of the reason the deal was approved by the government was the impact it would have on Boeing and its supplier and vendor partners in the United States. With more than 1.5 million jobs connected to the production of the planes, the hope is that the agreement will be a long-term boast to the American economy.
As for the planes, the Boeing 737 MAX will be 14 percent more fuel efficient than today's current fleet of aircraft and will focus on more comfort for the passengers. The Boeing 777-300ER is regarded as the most reliable twin-aisle aircraft in the world and has the highest cargo capacity of any passenger airplane.
Iran Air also ordered 15 Boeing 777-9s, which will feature include new engines, an all-new composite wing and will leverage technologies from the 787 Dreamliner. The planes are scheduled to enter service in 2020.
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