A passenger plane carrying 105 people crashed in a snowy and mountainous region of northwestern Iran on Sunday, news agencies in the country reported.
Several people suffered severe injuries but at least 50 people have been rescued, the news agencies said.
At least 10 people with severe wounds were hospitalized, an emergency services official, Mojtaba Khalebi, said, according to the semi-official Iranian Labor News Agency.
"The number of dead has not yet been determined because the priority is to save those that have been injured first," the news agency quoted him as saying. "Not all of the passengers have been killed. A number are still alive."
Severe weather at the crash site is making rescue operations difficult, he told the news agency.
Fifty to 60 people were taken from the plane with injuries, the Mehr news agency quoted Gholareza Masoomi, the head of Iran's Emergency Services, as saying.
"Fortunately, reports say that plane did not explode upon impact," and the crash may have happened when the plane was already nearing its destination and close to the ground, the news agency quoted him as saying.
The crash happened near Orumiyeh, a city in the mountainous Azarbaijan province, the semi-official Fars news agency said.
The IranAir aircraft crashed near Lake Orumiyeh, said Gholam-Reza Masoumi, head of the State Emergency Center in Iran, according to state-run Press TV.
The Boeing 727 took off from Tehran after a one-hour delay and was flying to Orumiyeh, Press TV said.
FULL STORY
Must have been a drone
It is a BOEING 727-200 that have tha crash. Not all russian planes are unsafe, the old Boeings are also a real danger especialy the B 727s.
The B727 while old as dirt, was and still is a reliable workhorse as long as they're maintained adequately. Same for many of the Russian planes. But.. it's way too early to speculate and pilot error is usually to blame in many crashes so it may not be the plane's fault at all. I'm glad there were survivors.
Lots of cold bloggers. Gonna go back top the playoffs. Bye, nuts.
Alot of morons on here...gives nice pic of US of A.
Have to presume this is the standard mentality.
Not sure of the ages of most posters but as a middle aged American mother I find 99% of them offensive and NOT the mentality of most Americans. This incident is a horrific tragedy regardless of who built the plane, where it was enflight to or from, or what nationality the passengers were. Good grief...these are human lives...parents, sons, daughters, fathers and on and on. Doubtful any of you have ever served on a disaster mission trip to see the havoc and pain for the families involved. My Savior does not love according to nationality...any and all aboard this flight were HIs children. Grow up and learn what's real and important in life...nasty comments are so inappropriate at this time. I pray for comfort to those in mourning and healing for those who survived. I don't care who they are.
Typical western news response. Whenever a western manufactured jet crashes they are very quiet about discussing that fact, yet when a Russian made jet is involved in an accident its trumpted and displayed with arrogance. Boeing, Foker and Airbus must definatley be shareholders in C.N.N. Since it was a Fokker, this definatley is a Fokked up situation.
Every aircraft in Iran is ancient or locally built, so none are particularly safe. Both Western and Russian/Soviet aircraft can be very safe if maintained properly and flown by prudent pilots. Most air crashes are caused by pilot error / poor flight planning, followed by shoddy maintenance.
Gary: Hi, I want to slap you. I don't like you either.
@Are: Hi. I don't like you either. I don't like you, and I don't like Gary.
WHO CARES who like or not?! Go ahead face palm yourself!
I don't like Gary either! Stupid idiot. Who's Gary again??
Why this??? lets think about the tragedy only... this's supposed to be a serious blog ... its not facebook!!!
wow this story is really buried! i wasn't aware we hated iran THAT much.
shame the iranian president wasn't on board
You're all wrong. It was an Airbus. And no surprise it's an Airbus since most of these planes are having severe failures, like the Air France that crashed in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Some friends and I are building a new webpage to remind people about that accident. Air France and Airbus paid a lot of money to hide the real failure of some pieces inside the plane and people must know about that. Their planes aren't safe.
besides they arent BUSES... they are airplanes...nothing BUS about them...
i bet there is alot of things the public doenst know about them
I really feel sorry for you. If the person that posted the news about the crash listed the plane as a 727, It is not an AIRBUS but a Boeing and they have the best safety record in the world and the 727s are still used in the USA.
RIP to the passengers & crew
Shame on those who are so ignorant that they cant even feel compassion for civillians...is that the american way?
blah blah blah – move to Iran your compasionate freak
Agreed.
@Robbie: Good idea. I only wish he was the ONLY one on that plane. I would then celebrate with champagne. I feel bad for those poor innocent Iranians. I hate to fly-scared.
hoo currs
You're all wrong! It was an Airbus. And no surprise it's an Airbus since most of these planes are having severe failures, like the Air France that crashed in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Some friends and I are building a new webpage to remind people about that accident. Air France and Airbus paid a lot of money to hide the real failure of some pieces inside the plane and people must know about that. Their planes aren't safe.
It cleary says in the article that it was a boeing. I did not see the word Airbus in there once. Can you read?
*Slaps you upside the head too* READ READ READ READ! If you can't, which is obvious, GO BACK TO KINDERGARTEN!
Well they are only Iranians anyway