Iran plane crash: At least 15 killed after military cargo flight goes down

Flames engulfed Boeing 707 immediately after it skidded off runway

At least 15 people have been killed after a military cargo plane crashed in Iran.

The army said a flight engineer survived and was taken to hospital, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.

A fire engulfed the Boeing 707 immediately after it skidded off a runway and crashed into a wall separating the airfield from a residential neighbourhood in the town of Safadasht, reports said.

State-run media showed the burnt-out tail of the plane surrounded by charred homes.

The plane was heading for Payam International airport, about 25 miles west of Tehran, when it made an emergency landing at Fath airport nearby.

The plane was making an emergency landing on the outskirts of Tehran (AFP/Getty) (HASAN SHIRVANI/AFP/Getty Images)

“A Boeing cargo 707 plane carrying meat from Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan had an emergency landing at Fath airport today ... the flight engineer has been dispatched to the hospital,” the army said.

“It exited the runway during the landing and caught fire after hitting the wall at the end of the runway.”

Authorities have yet to explain the reason for the crew’s decision to land there, though they said the crew had declared an emergency before landing.

Fars said the plane crash-landed after “mistaking the airport with another airfield because of the bad weather”.

Seven bodies from the crash have been recovered, Iranian media reported.

Iran’s air force said that the fate of the crew, including their possible “martyrdom”, is under investigation.

Iranians often use the word “martyrdom” for those who die in war or national service, suggesting the aircraft may have belonged to the air force. The air force does operate Boeing 707s.