Plane crashes in Iran, kills 39

An Iranian passenger airplane carrying 48 people crashed in the early hours of today killing 39 passengers on board and leaving 9 badly injured. The jet, IrAn-140, state media said, crashed near the Mehrabad airport while taking off from the capital, Tehran.

Seven children were reportedly on board the plane which had 40 passengers and eight crew members
Official IRNA news agency said the plane suffered an engine failure and its tail struck cables of an electric tower before hitting the ground and bursting into flames.

Shortly after the plane went down, men of the Revolutionary Guard secured the crash site while rescue personnel combed the wreckage.

State TV said the bodies of some of the victims were burnt beyond recognition. They will be handed over to relatives after DNA tests are carried out to determine their identities, it said.

The IrAn-140 is a twin-engine turboprop plane based on Ukrainian technology and assembled in Iran. It is a version of the Antonov An-140 regional plane and can carry up to 52 passengers.

The Taban Airlines plane was headed to the eastern city of Tabas, the IRNA and Fars news agencies said,