UPDATE 2 - Private Turkish plane crashes in Iran

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS

By Mustafa Melih Ahishali

ISTANBUL (AA) - A private Turkish aircraft, with 11 people on board, crashed in southwestern Iran, according to Iranian media reports.

The Istanbul-bound plane, which took off from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, was carrying eight passengers and three crew members, Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported.

The crash occurred in Kiyar district of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province.

Everyone on board reportedly died in the crash.

Mojtaba Khaledi, the spokesman of the Iranian Emergency Management Organization, said villagers had found the wreckage of the plane, the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) quoted him as saying.

He confirmed the plane had hit a mountain, adding that DNA tests will be needed to identify the bodies.

Kiyar District Governor Kademali Merdani said 50 mountaineers will also be sent to the area to help the search and rescue operations, according to Iranian Tasnim news agency.

The plane had vanished from radar at around 1440 GMT after it took off at 1330 GMT, according to Turkish ministry of transport, maritime affairs and communications.

The aircraft was owned by Turkish Basaran Holding.