All 176 people on board the Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) Flight PS752 bound for Kiev were killed when the plane crashed only two minutes after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport on Wednesday morning. Until now, the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate event have led to more questions instead of answers.
Kiev’s Foreign Ministry listed the following victims from seven countries: 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 10 Swedes, 4 Afghans, 3 Germans, 3 British, 2 Ukrainians and 9 crew members.
The black box was recovered, and according to international law, the airplane crash investigation of Ukrainian flight PS752 should be carried out in and by Iran, the country where the catastrophic event happened.
Iran stated that they will not surrender the black box to Boeing and neither do they intend to invite the United States to take part in the investigation.
“We will not give the black box to the manufacturer [Boeing] or America. The cause of the accident will not be discovered or announced until the black box is analyzed,” Ali Abedzadeh, the head of Tehran’s civil aviation organization, informed Mehr News Agency.
Abedzadeh was further quoted telling Ukrainian investigators that they will be present during the investigation.
The head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Authority also said that the pilot did not contact Air Traffic Control to report any problems.
There were initial findings provided by Ukraine’s Tehran embassy that suggested engine failure as the reason behind the crash, but the consulate later retracted its statement and disclosed they were looking into other possibilities to determine the cause of the aviation accident.
Iranian state news likewise initially reported that the disaster was caused by mechanical trouble, and while some aviation experts wondered if the plane was brought down by a missile, terrorist attacks were quickly ruled out by Iranian officials.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, cautioned the public not to speculate or share unconfirmed theories about the plane crash in Tehran until official reports were released.
The Ukrainian leader wrote, “Tonight, our plane with a team of experts is going to Iran. All of them will be involved in the investigation, identification and repatriation of the bodies of Ukrainians killed in the plane crash.”
Even though Iran declined to give Boeing the black box, the American aerospace company readily offered its assistance in any way required.
Due to the tragedy, the management of the UIA announced the suspension of all scheduled Ukrainian flights, effective January 9, 2020.
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