Boeing has won US approval to sell its first jetliners to Iran in almost 40 years, paving the way for the biggest business transaction between the two nations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the US hostage crisis. The US Treasury Department granted licenses to Boeing and Airbus Group on Wednesday for the first of a flurry of aircraft orders that Iran is counting on to upgrade an aging fleet. Airbus won approval to export the first 17 jets in a USD27bn transaction announced in January as economic sanctions were eased. Boeing is still finalising terms to provide as many as 109 jets to Iran Air. (Bloomberg)