A Boeing 707 cargo plane traveling from Kyrgyzstan crashed today while trying to land west of Tehran, the Iranian capital, state media reported, and an emergency official said that only one of the 16 on board was known to have survived.
Fire immediately engulfed the aircraft after it skidded off a runway and crashed into a wall separating the Fath Airport from a residential neighborhood. Images carried by Iran’s state-run media showed the burned-out tail of the plane sticking out, surrounded by charred homes.
The plane crashed at the airport, which belongs to Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard, after diverting from its intended destination, the nearby Payam International Airport, about 25 miles west of Tehran.
The authorities did not immediately offer a reason for the crew’s decision to land there, although they said the crew had declared an emergency before landing.