Iran plane crash kills all 168 people aboard

A RUSSIAN-MADE Iranian passenger plane carrying 168 people crashed shortly after take-off yesterday, smashing into a field northwest of the capital and shattering into flaming pieces. All on board were killed in Iran’s worst air disaster in six years, officials said.

Before crashing, the plane’s tail was on fire as it circled in the air, one witness said.

“Then, I saw the plane crashing nose-down. It hit the ground causing a big explosion. The impact shook the ground like an earthquake. Then, plane pieces were scattered all over the agricultural fields,” Ali Akbar Hashemi, a 23-year-old who was laying gas pipes in a nearby home, said.