KIEV, October 31 (RIA Novosti) - Iran will buy 50 An-148 medium-haul airliners from Ukraine, Kiev's Unian news agency reported on Friday.

Iran's HESA company and four Ukrainian companies - the aircraft maker Antonov, the Kiev-based Aviant aircraft plant, the Motor Sich engine making plant, and the Kharkov production association - signed a letter of intent on Friday.

The two countries have yet to sign an intergovernmental agreement before the deal can move ahead.

In its basic modification, the An-148 is designed to carry 70-90 passengers up to 5,000 kilometers. It costs an estimated $20 million to build, less than Sukhoi's Superjet 100 (around $28 million).