Plane Crash Leaves 70 Dead in Iran

At least 70 have been killed and 32 have injured ia an Iranian passenger plane crash.

At least 70 people have been killed and 32 have been injured in a plane crash near the northwestern Iranian city of Orumiyeh.

(TEHRAN Press TV) - The IranAir-operated plane, with 105 passengers and crew on board, crashed near Lake Orumiyeh (700 kilometers northwest of the capital, Tehran), head of Iran's State Emergency Center Gholam-Reza Masoumi said on Sunday.

The American-made Boeing 727 had taken off from Mehr Abad Airport in Tehran, with a one-hour delay and was en route to Orumiyeh International Airport when the incident happened.

The plane reportedly approached the runway to land, but was forced to delay the touchdown due to bad weather. The aircraft then disappeared from radar and went down in a farmland after making a second attempt to land.

Iran's Red Crescent Society told Press TV that the death toll is expected to rise.

The exact cause of the crash is not yet known. Iranian Road and Transportation Minister Hamid Behbahani, who rushed to the crash site Sunday night, said the plane's black box would need to be studied before more details could be announced. He also noted there would be interviews with survivors of the crash.

Many of the injured have been reported to be in critical conditions. They have been rushed to hospitals in the cities of Orumiyeh and Tabriz.

Seventy centimeters (27 inches) of snow and thick fog are hampering the rescue operations.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has offered his condolences to the families of the crash victims.

Iran has a history of frequent air accidents blamed on its aging aircraft. IranAir's fleet includes Boeing and Airbus aircraft.

The sanctions by the United States prevent Iran from updating its 30-year-old aircraft and make it difficult to get European spare parts or planes as well.

In July 2009, a Russian-made jetliner crashed in northwest Iran shortly after taking off from the capital, killing all 168 on board.

In Iran's worst air accident, a Russian-made Ilyushin 76 crashed in the mountains of southeastern Iran in February 2003, killing 302 people on board.

Ahmadinejad Offers Condolences

In his message, President Ahmadinejad instructed Minister of Roads and Transportation Hamid Behbahani and other relevant officials to immediately probe into the cause of deadly accident.

The Iranian chief executive said he was deeply saddened by the plane crash and offered his condolences to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and the Iranian nation.

At least 77 people were killed and 27 injured when an IranAir-operated passenger plane crashed near the city of Orumiyeh, West Azarbaijan Province, Sunday night, IRNA quoted Head of Orumiyeh University of Medical Sciences Nosrat Molazadeh as saying on Monday.

The official added that all 27 people who were injured in the accident were transferred to hospitals in Orumiyeh.

The plane crashed near Lake Orumiyeh (700 kilometers northwest of the Iranian capital, Tehran), head of Iran's State Emergency Center Gholam-Reza Masoumi said on Sunday.

The American-made Boeing 727 had taken off from Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, with a one-hour delay and was en route to Orumiyeh International Airport when the incident happened.

The plane reportedly approached the runway to land, but was forced to delay the touchdown due to severe winter weather conditions. The aircraft then disappeared from radar and went down in a farmland after making a second attempt to land.