In Pictures

In Pictures: Ukrainian passenger plane crashes near Tehran

Jet crashed minutes after taking off from Tehran airport on its way to Kyiv, killing all 176 people on board.

A man takes a photo of the arrivals board with the cancelled fight from Tehran after Ukrainian 737-800 plane crashed on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran, at Borispil international airport outside Kyiv, U — A man takes a photo of the arrivals board at Boryspil International Airport outside Kyiv, Ukraine with the cancelled fight after the Ukrainian 737-800 plane crashed on the outskirts of Tehran. [Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo]

A Ukrainian passenger jet carrying 176 people crashed on Wednesday morning minutes after taking off from the Iranian capital’s main airport, turning farmland on the outskirts of Tehran into fields of flaming debris and killing all on board.

The plane had 167 passengers and nine crew members on board.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Vadym Prystaiko, said there were 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians and 11 Ukrainians on the plane.

The Ukrainian nationals included two passengers and the nine crew. There were also 10 Swedish, four Afghan, three German and three British nationals, Prystaiko said.

The plane’s departure from Imam Khomeini International Airport was delayed by almost an hour. It took off to the west but never made it above 8,000 feet, according to data from the flight-tracking website FlightRadar24.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy extended his condolences to the families of the victims and ordered a sweeping inspection of all civil airplanes in the country, “no matter the conclusions about the crash in Iran”.

Qassem Biniaz, a spokesman for Iran’s Road and Transportation Ministry, said it appeared one of the engines caught fire. The pilot then lost control, sending the plane crashing, Biniaz was quoted as saying by the state-run IRNA news agency.

A Ukrainian International Airline company worker reacts during a briefing at Borispil international airport outside Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. A Ukrainian airplane carrying 176 people cra — An airline company worker reacts during a briefing at Boryspil International Airport. [Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo]

Rescue workers search the scene where a Ukrainian plane crashed in Shahedshahr southwest of the capital Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. A Ukrainian airplane with more than 170 people crashed on — The Ukrainian passenger jet carrying 176 people crashed just minutes after taking off from the Iranian capital's main airport. [Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo]

Graphic content / An engine lies on the ground after a Ukrainian plane carrying 176 passengers crashed near Imam Khomeini airport in the Iranian capital Tehran early in the morning on January 8, 2020, — The plane was carrying 167 passengers and nine crew members. [AFP]

Passengers'' belongings are pictured at the site where the Ukraine International Airlines plane crashed after take-off from Iran''s Imam Khomeini airport, on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran January 8, 202 — Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy extended his condolences to the families of the victims. [Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA via Reuters]

Security officers and Red Crescent workers are seen at the site where the Ukraine International Airlines plane crashed after take-off from Iran''s Imam Khomeini airport, on the outskirts of Tehran, Ira — Security officers and aid workers at the site of the crash just outside Tehran. [Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA via Reuters]

Debris is seen from a plane crash on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. A Ukrainian airplane carrying at least 170 people crashed on Wednesday shortly after takeoff from Tehran’s — The Ukrainian president ordered a sweeping inspection of all civil airplanes in the country. [Mohammad Nasiri/AP Photos]

Rescue workers carry items retrieved from the scene where a Ukrainian plane crashed in Shahedshahr, southwest of the capital Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. A Ukrainian airplane with more than — Rescue workers carry items retrieved from the scene where the plane crashed in Shahedshahr, southwest of the capital Tehran. [Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo]

A forensic investigator works at the scene of a Ukrainian plane crash as bodies of the victims are collected, in Shahedshahr, southwest of the capital Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. A Ukrainia — A forensic investigator at the scene of the crash as bodies of the victims are collected. [Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo]