Iranian Plane Crashes in UAE, Officials Say
10 Feb 04
Yahoo! News
SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates (Reuters) - An Iranian plane with at least 40 passengers on board crashed Tuesday during take-off from Sharjah airport in the United Arab Emirates.
Witnesses said only flaming bits and pieces remained of the Kish Airlines plane. Ambulances were rushing to and from the scene. There was no immediate word on the number of casualties in the incident.
"Only a bit of the tail remained. It doesn't look like many people survived. Rescue teams are still looking for people," one witness said.
"The plane crashed near the tarmac. Police have sealed off the area to allow rescue operations," she added.
The official UAE news agency WAM said the plane was carrying 40 passengers. A UAE officials had earlier said the plane was carrying 60 passengers.
A Kish Airlines official in Iran confirmed that one of the company's planes had been involved in an accident but said the company was still seeking further information.
Earlier, security sources had said the plane was a Russian cargo jet with 35 passengers on board. The type of plane was not clear.
Iran's airlines have difficulty maintaing their aging fleet of Boeing aircraft, many of them bought before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, due to U.S. sanctions. Instead, they have turned to Russian made-aircraft often leased from former Soviet countries.
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