Plane crash outside Tehran in Iran kills 48 passengers and crew

48 people, including 40 passengers and 8 crew were killed this morning August 10th when a small passenger plane crashed shortly after take off from Mehrabad Airport in Tehran, the capital of Iran, Iranian state TV reports.

The plane, an Antonov An-140, designed for short domestic flights, was traveling from Tehran to the northeastern city of Tabas when it went down in a residential area. At least five children were on board the plane. Five people on the ground were burnt to death. Iran's aviation authority cited engine failure as the cause of the crash. This is the first major crash in Iran since 2011.

This year has really been bad for air travel. At least five commercial airline crashes in 6 months and over 800 killed.