A Ukrainian Airlines plane crashed after taking off from Tehran airport en route to Kiev airport. The incident, which came hours after Iran launched missiles at two bases in Iraq, killed all on board.
The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that a Ukrainian plane with at least 170 people on board crashed today (January 8, 2020) due to "technical problems" after taking off from Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran.
Reza Jafarzadeh, a spokesman for Iran Civil Aviation Organization, told state television that the authorities sent rescue teams to an area near the airport where the Boeing 737 plane belonging to the Ukrainian Airlines crashed.
Iranian television announced that all people who were on board of the Ukrainian plane have been killed when it crushed in Iran.
The accident occurred hours after Iran launched missiles at two bases in Iraq, where US soldiers are stationed.
Videos on social networking sites (whose authenticity could not be verified) showed that the aircraft crashed and was burning in the air.
It is worth mentioning that Ukraine International Airlines operates a daily flight from Tehran to Kyiv, PS752. Data from flight-tracking service FlightRadar24 appeared to show PS752 departing from Tehran, with communication with the plane being lost approximately three minutes later. Business Insider was unable to independently verify that flight PS752 was the plane that crashed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a Facebook post that he would cancel the rest of his current trip to Oman and would return to Kiev due to the crash.
"My sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of all passengers and crew members," Zelensky said.
"Emergency crews were dispatched to the crash site but could not assist because the area was ablaze," said Pirhossein Koulivand, the head of Iran's Emergency Medical Services.
Koulivand told state-run media outlet IRINN that the crash site is between the cities of Parand and Shahriar.
Follow the latest news on Google News
