Iran: Plane skids off runway with 135 onboard; all passengers safe

With over 100 passengers on board, a plane skidded off the runway as it landed at Iran's Mahshahr airport on Monday. However, no harm was caused to any passenger on board.

The Caspian Airliner Flight 6936 had left Tehran for Mahshahr with 135 passengers and seven crew members on board.

A technical issue delayed the plane's landing which caused the accident, Khuzestan province's aviation authority told local media.

"Arriving at Mahshahr airport, the pilot landed the aircraft too late and this caused him to miss the runway," local media reported. 

Also read: Iran's Hassan Rouhani sounds alarm for 'democracy' after candidates barred

The aviation authorities have launched an investigation into the incident.

On Saturday, an Iranian airplane en route from Tehran to Istanbul made an emergency landing at a Tehran airport because of a technical problem.

The Islamic republic had been planning to upgrade its decrepit fleet after long-standing US sanctions were lifted following the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

But when US President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord in 2018 and reimposed crippling economic sanctions, the treasury department revoked licenses for Boeing and Airbus to sell passenger jets to Iran.

(With inputs from agencies)