All 48 people onboard an Iranian plane, including five children, died in a crash near an airport in Iran's capital Tehran on Sunday morning.
The 40 passengers - including two infants, three children below 12 and eight crew members - lost their lives in the crash. Three others on ground are understood to have suffered burns at the site and have been admitted to a hospital.
The Sepahan Air Iran-140 plane crashed near Azadi residential area in northwest of Tehran due to a fault in the engine, which is said to have shut down moments after taking off from the Mehrabad airport, reported Reuters.
The plane was heading east to Tabas in the South Khorassan province when it crashed over the residential area at around 9:45 am local time.
The dead bodies are now reportedly being taken to the coroners' office, where officials would confirm and certify deaths.
Old jets
Almost all of Iran's in-service airplanes, including those of the major airliners - Iran Air, Iran Aseman Airlines, Mahan Air and Iran Air Tours - are more than 25 years old.
To replace them, Iran would need hundreds of new passenger planes. Consequently, the old jets are kept in service by replacing their defunct parts with spare ones bought from black markets.
Iran Air would alone need to buy at least 100 passenger jets once the international trade sanctions are lifted off the nation, Iran Air chief said.
Iranian politicians have held the international sanctions responsible, which have barred the airliners from buying new aircrafts.
Iran has so far witnessed the loss of over 2,000 lives in more than 200 air accidents in the last 25 years.
