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January 9, 2020

Investigators Probe Cause of Fatal Boeing Plane Crash in Tehran
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Ukrainian International Airlines has announced an indefinite suspension
of all flights to Iran after a Boeing 737 passenger jet crashed shortly
after takeoff in Tehran en route to Kiev, killing all 176 aboard, early
Wednesday morning. After the crash, Iranian officials said the plane
suffered technical problems. But Iranian investigators now say the plane
was on fire while it was still in the air. Ukrainian investigators are
looking into the possibility that an anti-aircraft missile could have
hit the passenger jet or that there was an engine malfunction. Iran says
it is withholding the plane's black box and will not give it to Boeing
or the Americans. The jet crash came only hours after Iran launched
missiles at two Iraqi military bases that house U.S. and Iraqi troops as
revenge for the U.S. assassination of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani
last week. The jet was a predecessor to Boeing's flawed 737 MAX
passenger jet, which has been grounded worldwide following two deadly
crashes that killed 346 people.


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