An Aseman Airlines flight carrying dozens of passengers from Tehran to Yasuj in Iran has crashed in a mountainous area, according to reports that stated all 66 people on board had died.

 

The plane crashed in a mountainous area near the town of Semirom, the news agency ISNA quoted emergency services spokesman Mojtaba Khaledi as saying.

 

"After searches in the area, unfortunately we were informed that the plane crashed. Unfortunately, all our dear ones lost their lives in this incident," Mohammad Tabatabai, public relations director for Aseman Airlines, told state broadcaster IRIB.

 

 

A report identified the plane as an ATR-72.

 

Under decades of international sanctions, Iran's commercial passenger aircraft fleet has aged, with air accidents occurring regularly in recent years.

 

 

Following the 2015 landmark nuclear deal with world powers, Iran signed deals with both Airbus and Boeing to buy scores of passenger planes.