Ukrainian Airlines tragedy: suspicions of terrorism mount

Sometimes silence speaks louder than words. ["The dog that didn't bark". Ed.] Here is what is known, now, about the last moments of Ukrainian International Airlines flight PS752. The B737-800, fully loaded with fuel, lifted off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini airport at 0612 Wednesday, almost an hour late, for the four-hour flight to Kyiv. No reason for the delayed departure has as yet been given.

Tracking data suggests that the plane had reached a speed of about 500 km/h and an altitude of just over 2400 metres, when, about four minutes after takeoff, it suddenly plunged to earth, crashing near a soccer field and irrigation canal outside the town of Parand, 30 km northwest of the airport.

There was no distress call or other communication from the cockpit in the moments before the crash. The aircraft just disappeared from the radar == there one moment, gone the next.

Our aviation expert (Agent 17) says the sudden disappearance from the radar, combined with radio silence, indicates a sudden catastrophic event. If the plane had lost an engine or had other mechanical/technical trouble, there should have been time for the pilots to alert air traffic control and, perhaps, declare an emergency. But nothing was heard. Just silence.

The timing of the tragedy -- just four hours after the Iranians launched a barrage of missiles at two bases housing American and other international military personnel in Iraq, an initial reprisal for the Americans' January 3rd killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani -- raises suspicion that the plane may have been sabotaged or shot down... accidentally or on purpose. Stay tuned.

UPDATED: Crash of Ukrainian airliner work of Iran/Islamic terrorists?

New just breaking... Ukraianian International Airlines flight PS752 crashed just after takeoff from Tehran's international airport this morning, killing all 176 passengers and crew. Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Vadym Prystaiko said 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians and 11 Ukrainians were on board. The Ukrainian nationals included two passengers and the nine crew. There were also ten Swedish, four Afghan, three German and three British nationals, he said.

Some reports say the aircraft -- a Boeing 737-800 (not the same type as the Max8) -- was on fire when it crashed. That could indicate a mid-air explosion. May Walt be forgiven for wondering if this tragedy is in any way connected with the retaliation promised by the Iranian government for the killing of Gen. Qassem Suleimani by a US drone strike, late last week. Stay tuned.

UPDATE ADDED at 1230: Latest reports are that the Iranian government will not hand over the "black boxes" (=flight data recorders) from the crashed plane to either Boeing or America. Iran's semi-official news agency quoted the head of Iran's civil aviation organization as saying it was not clear which country Iran would send the black boxes to for analysis, but it would not give them to Boeing, which is based in the United States, a country with which Iran has no diplomatic relations. What does that tell you?