State TV: Airplane crashes in Iran, killing 48

Iranian Revolutionary Guards stand alert at the site of the wreckage of a passenger plane crash near the capital Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Aug. 10, 2014. AP

Tehran, Iran–Iranian state television reports 48 people have been killed in the passenger plane crash near the capital, Tehran.

Iranian state television said 40 passengers and eight crew members were killed Sunday in the crash. The plane, operated by Sepahan Air, was heading to Tabas, a town in eastern Iran. State TV said it took off at 9:20 a.m. local time (4:50 GMT) and crashed shortly afterward.

The aircraft, an Iran-140 jet typically used for short domestic flights, crashed near Mehrabad airport, west of Tehran.

Iranian airlines, including those run by the state, are chronically strapped for cash, and maintenance has suffered. US sanctions prevent Iran from updating its American aircraft and make it difficult to get European spare parts or planes as well.

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