Everyone on board a Ukrainian Boeing 746 died when it crashed shortly after take off from Iran’s main international airport, according to Iran state television.
Iranian state television said there were 170 passengers and crew on the plane when it came down due to what it described as “technical problems” after leaving the Imam Khomeini airport in Tehran en route to Kiev.
An investigation team was at the site of the crash in southwestern outskirts of Tehran, civil aviation spokesman Reza Jafarzadeh said.
“The plane is on fire but we have sent crews … and we may be able to save some passengers, “Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s emergency services, told state television.
He later said:” The fire is so heavy that we cannot (do) any rescue … we have 27 ambulances, four bus ambulances and a helicopter at the site. “
The Ukrainian president has said the embassy in Tehran is trying to clarify the circumstances around the crash and he offered his condolences to the relatives of those killed.
Flight data from the airport showed a Ukrainian – 800 flown by Ukraine International Airlines took off Wednesday morning, then stopped sending data almost immediately afterwards, according to website FlightRadar 27.
The crash came hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack targeting two bases in Iraq housing US and coalition forces forces in retaliation for the killing of Revolutionary Guard General Qassem Soleimani.
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