Private plane from Sharjah to Turkey crashes in Iran, killing 11

A private plane flying from Sharjah to Istanbul crashed in Iran last night, killing 11 people, according to reports.

The plane was owned by Turkish company Basaran Holding and was widely reported to have been carrying the group’s heir, Mina Basaran, who had been in Dubai with friends to celebrate her bachelorette party.

The Bombardier Challenger C600 was carrying eight passengers and three crew who died on impact, Iran’s ISNA news agency said.

An emergency services spokesman said the plane crashed in a mountainous area down near Shahr-e Kord city, about 370 kilometres south of Tehran, and caught fire.

Villagers near the crash said they saw flames coming from the plane’s engine before the crash, Iran’s state-run news agency Mizan reported.

Sheikh Khalid bin Essam Al Qasimi, Sharjah’s most senior civil aviation official, told The

National it appeared that the aircraft had disappeared off the radar on last night but said he could not confirm if it was the same plane.

“Once we have confirmed the information we will make a statement,” Sheikh Khalid said.

Istanbul’s Daily Sabah reported that Ms Basaran was due to marry at the end of the month.

Her public Instagram page showed her standing next to an aircraft with the tail code TCTRB – the same as the plane that went down – and images from inside the aircraft.

Images also showed her relaxing with seven friends at a Dubai Marina hotel resort on Saturday.