Iran says it will not give black box of Ukrainian plane to Boeing

Video footage of the flight shows that it was on fire shortly after taking off, crashing shortly thereafter. All 176 people on board were killed.

By REUTERS

JANUARY 8, 2020 21:35

Debris of a plane belonging to Ukraine International Airlines, that crashed after taking off from Iran's Imam Khomeini airport, is seen on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran January 8, 2020 (photo credit: NAZANIN TABATABAEE/WANA VIA REUTERS) — Debris of a plane belonging to Ukraine International Airlines, that crashed after taking off from Iran's Imam Khomeini airport, is seen on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran January 8, 2020

(photo credit: NAZANIN TABATABAEE/WANA VIA REUTERS)

Iran's civil aviation organization has said that it will not hand over to Boeing the black box of the Ukrainian airlines flight that crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran's Imam Khomeni Airport on Wednesday morning.

Both black boxes were found Wednesday, Iranian state television has reported. An Iranian official was quoted as saying both boxes were damaged but that it was believed their data could still be retrieved.

On Wednesday morning, engine failure was named as the cause of the crash. However, the Ukrainian embassy to Iran later issued a new statement on the crash which omitted engine failure as a cause, and saying that any previous statements on the cause of the crash had not been official.

Video footage of the flight shows that it was on fire shortly after taking off, crashing shortly thereafter. All 176 people on board were killed.

✈️ — UPDATE: First footage of moment the Boeing 737 Ukrainian Airlines plane crashes with 180 passengers in the Iranian capital, Tehran — No word on casualties or confirmed reason for the crash.Plane crashed moments after takeoff pic.twitter.com/VTnEXmesTK
— ®️BELAAZ (@TheBelaaz) January 8, 2020

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said there were no survivors.

"My sincere condolences to the relatives and friends of all passengers and crew," Zelenskiy said in a statement, adding that Ukraine was seeking to establish the circumstances of the crash and the death toll.

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Iranian state TV and Ukraine's prime minister said 167 passengers and 9 crew were on board.

There was no official word from Ukraine International Airlines.

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"The fire is so heavy that we cannot (do) any rescue... we have 22 ambulances, four bus ambulances and a helicopter at the site," Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran's emergency services, told Iranian state television.

Television footage showed debris and smoldering engine parts strewn across a field, and rescue workers with face masks retrieving bodies of the victims.

According to air tracking service FlightRadar24, the plane that crashed was Flight PS 752 and was flying to Kiev. The plane was three years old and was a Boeing 737-NG, it said.