Many questions remain about the crash of a Ukraine International Airlines plane in Iran on Wednesday, which killed all 176 passengers on board. In the immediate hours following the incident, both Iran and Ukraine ruled out rocket attacks as the cause and blamed the crash on a technical malfunction. However, since then, both countries have walked back on their statements and now refuse to speculate on the matter.
The 1944 Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation lays out the procedure for handling probes into air crashes. Though the investigations are supposed to be led by the countries where the incidents occur, aircraft manufacturers and airline operators also have a role to play in such situations. However, given the recent escalation of tensions between Tehran and Washington, it is unclear whether the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which is the body in charge of handling such investigations, would be involved.
Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy has ordered prosecutors to open a formal probe into the crash and Canada has offered expertise, given that there were 63 Canadian passengers on board. At a press conference in Kyiv, Ukraine International Airlines president Yevhenii Dykhne stated that it was “impossible that there were mistakes made by the crew” and emphasized that Tehran airport was not “a simple airport” and requires several years of training to use. Some Western intelligence agencies, however, have shared their initial assessments that there is no evidence that the aircraft had been hit by a missile.
The Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800 bound for Kyiv took off shortly after 6 AM from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport early on Wednesday morning and crashed just minutes after takeoff. Boeing said that it was in contact with the airline and that it was “ready to assist in any way needed.” Just last month, Boeing changed its leadership as CEO Dennis Muilenburg was ousted after one of the company’s most disastrous years - two 737 Max planes crashed in 2018, and all Max planes worldwide have been grounded. Following this incident, the 737-800 planes will now face renewed international scrutiny. In the meantime, all direct flights between Ukraine and Iran have been suspended and numerous commercial airlines are rerouting flights crossing the Middle East to avoid any danger from current tensions.
Image Source: Reuters