Tehran - Sixteen people were killed and 29 injured when an Iranian plane caught fire while landing in the north-eastern city of Mashad, the spokesman of the country's civil aviation organization said Saturday in giving the final toll from the accident. Reza Jafarzadeh said 153 passengers were on board the Russian-made Ilyushin 62M belonging to the Aria Airlines, of whom 13 crew members and three passengers were killed Friday.
The Fars news agency quoted the spokesman as saying the plane, which was on a flight from Tehran, belonged to Kazakhstan and caught fire after landing and crashed into a wall at the side of the airport runway.
There were unconfirmed reports that the pilot and co-pilot, who were killed, were not Iranians but Russians or Kazakhs.
Television footage showed the plane with its tail on the ground and the cockpit a mass of tangled metal. The rest of the aircraft appeared intact.
Mashad airport was temporarily closed after the accident, delaying the arrival of inspection teams from Tehran.
Two weeks ago, another Russian-made Iranian passenger plane crashed shortly after takeoff on a flight from Tehran to Armenia, killing all 168 on board.
The accidents were the ninth and 10th plane crashes in the past six years in Iran.
Iran's air fleet, based mainly on US technology, has been one of Iran's industries hit by US and international sanctions, which have stopped the purchase of new models and spare parts.
