Human Error: Iran admits to shooting down Ukrainian plane by mistake

RT
Sat, 11 Jan 2020 04:24 UTC

© News Wire Now

The Ukrainian passenger aircraft that recently crashed in Iran's capital was brought down due to "human error" after flying too close to defense installations, triggering an accidental missile launch.

A military statement read on state media channels came as the first confirmation from Iranian officials that a missile, and not an engine fire, caused the crash last Wednesday. The statement noted that the shootdown was "unintentional" and maintained that those responsible would face consequences.

"A sad day," wrote Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Twitter, adding "Preliminary conclusions of internal investigation by Armed Forces:"

Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster. Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations.

The statement comes after a number of conflicting press reports as to the fate of the aircraft, as well as claims from the United States and Canada that the plane was brought down by an anti-air missile strike, which Iran initially disputed, pending investigation.

All 176 people on board the airliner were killed in the crash.

Comment: Moon of Alabama posted the complete statement:

The Iranian Armed Forces General Staff just admitted (in Farsi) that its air defenses inadvertently shot down the Ukrainian flight PS 752 shortly after it took off on January 8 in Tehran (machine translation, slightly edited for readability):

In the hours after the missile strikes, US terrorist forces' warplanes around the country increased, and some reports of air strikes targeting strategic centers in the country were reported to numerous defense units and targets on some radar plates. It has caused more sensitivity in air defense units.

In such critical conditions, the Ukrainian Airlines departs from Imam Khomeini Airport and, while in rotation, was in close proximity to a sensitive military center of the IRGC and in a height and shape of a hostile aircraft. In these circumstances, the plane was accidentally hit by a human error, which unfortunately results in the martyrdom of dear compatriots and the death of a number of foreign nationals.

The Armed Forces General Staff sends condolences to the families of missing persons of other countries and apologizes for the human error, ensures that this will not happen again by carrying out major reforms in operational processes at armed forces level to make such errors impossible and immediately report it to the Armed Forces Judicial Organization to deal with the errors committed legally.

The Pentagon had claimed that Iran shot down the airliner but the evidence it presented was flimsy and not sufficient as the U.S. tends to spread disinformation about Iran.

It is welcome that the Iranian forces come clean about the incident.

The Daily Mail reports:

The FAA confirmed to DailyMail.com on Friday that it published a 'notice to airmen' (NOTAM) warning of potential hazards along the flight routes in the area just three hours before the plane was shot down.

'Our NOTAMs were published roughly three hours before the accident,' a spokesperson for the FAA told Washington Free Beacon.

The notice specified 'flight restrictions that prohibit US civil aviation operators from operating in the airspace over Iraq, Iran, and the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

'The FAA will continue closely monitoring events in the Middle East,' the NOTAM said.

'We continue coordinating with our national security partners and sharing information with US air carriers and foreign civil aviation authorities.'

And from the BBC:

The statement said it had done so due to "human error" after the plane flew close to a sensitive site belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guards. Those responsible would be held accountable, the statement said.

Iran had previously rejected suggestions that one of its missiles brought down the plane near the capital, Tehran, on Wednesday.

But pressure mounted after the US and Canada, citing intelligence, said they believed Iran had brought the plane down with a missile, possibly accidently.

US media have speculated that the airliner may have been mistaken for a warplane as Iran prepared for possible US retaliation.

Iran has promised a full investigation. However, TV images from the crash site on Thursday showed a mechanical digger helping to clear debris away, raising concerns that important evidence could have been removed.

PressTV on the airliner's black box (from an earlier report):

At the same press conference, Hassan Rezaeifar, the head of the Aviation Organization's commission for plane crash probes, said Ukraine, France, Canada, and Russia have all expressed their readiness to assist Iran with the data extraction.

Tehran, he said, will send the black box to one of these countries if it fails to retrieve the data.

Iran has already urged all parties involved, including Boeing, to contribute to the probe into the crash.

"According to international regulations, representatives from the civil aviation agency of the country where the crash has taken place, the civil aviation agency of the country which has issued the airworthiness certificate (Ukraine), the owner of the airliner (Ukraine International Airlines), the aircraft manufacturer (Boeing Co.), and the jet engine manufacturer (CFM International) can participate in the investigation process," Iran's Government spokesman Ali Rabiei said Friday.

"A delegate from Ukraine is already in Iran. We call upon Boeing Co. to dispatch its own representative to participate in the process of reading the black box data," he said.

Rabiei said Iran also welcomes the participation of all the countries which have lost their nationals in the mishap.

Rouhani has made a further statement on the downing of the plane:

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has pledged to find and punish all involved in an unintentional shoot down of a Ukrainian aircraft over Tehran, calling it a "disastrous mistake."