176 onboard killed after Kiev-bound Boeing 737 crashes in Iran

Mangalore Today News Network

Ukraine, Jan 08, 2020: Ukraine Boeing 737 Plane Crash in Iran Today:  All 176 passengers and crew aboard the Boeing 737 were killed after the flight crashed in Tehran on Wednesday, Iran’s state television and a Ukrainian official said. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said there were 82 Iranians and 63 Canadians on board the Ukrainian airliner that crashed in Iran.

The plane belonging to Ukraine International Airlines crashed minutes after take-off from the Imam Khomeini International Airport and burst into flames. The pilot of the aircraft then lost control of the plane, sending it crashing into the ground, said Qassem Biniaz, a spokesman for Iran’s Road and Transportation Authority.

 

The Ukraine Embassy ruled out the "terror" links for the moment and said the plane went down "due to an engine problem". President Volodymyr Zelenskiy also warned against speculation and ordered the creation of a crisis team to handle the accident

A Ukrainian foreign ministry official in Kiev said all 167 passengers and nine crew members aboard were killed, citing information from the airline. Most passengers on crashed Ukraine flight were foreigners, it added. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed condolences and said Ukraine was trying to establish the circumstances of the crash and the death toll

"The fire is so heavy that we cannot (do) any rescue... we have 22 ambulances, four bus ambulances and a helicopter at the site," Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s emergency services, told state television.

"After taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport, it crashed between Parand and Shahriar," civil aviation spokesman Reza Jafarzadeh said. "An investigation team from the national aviation department was dispatched to the location after the news was announced."

A Ukrainian foreign ministry official in Kiev said all crew and passengers aboard were killed, citing information from the airline. (Twitter/@isna_farsi)

According to air tracking service FlightRadar24, the plane that crashed was Flight PS 752 and was flying to Kiev. The plane was three years old and was a Boeing 737-NG, it said. The airline’s call centre in Kiev said it had no information yet. Boeing spokesman Gordon Johndroe said the company was aware of media reports of a plane crash in Iran and was gathering more information.

A photo later published by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency showed rescue officials in a farm field, with what appeared to be pieces of the aircraft laying nearby.