France’s Airbus is due to deliver the second of 106 commercial jets on order from Iran Air soon, according to local media reports citing François Sénémaud, France’s ambassador to Iran.

This follows the release of $100m in down payment for two planes, the reports said.

The first plane, an A321, was delivered on 12 January.

It joined the fleet of flag carrier Iran Air catering to domestic flights.

Airbus’ publicly viewable database of plane orders and deliveries as of 31 January showed a total of 106 commercial aircraft on order from Iran Air.

The original announcement made in 2016 indicated that the order was for 118 planes estimated to cost $25bn at list price.

The type and number of aircraft to be purchased have since been scaled down. The latest order excludes the superjumbo A380 planes, which is understood to have halved the original order value.

The contract to purchase 80 planes from the US’ Boeing was signed in December last year. However, it is understood that the first deliveries will commence only in April 2018.

The Iranian government has said it needs up to 90 planes annually over the next few years to reinvigorate its aviation sector. Years of sanctions have left the country with old and poorly maintained aircraft, which have resulted in multiple fatal accidents in recent years.