Itek Air plane crashes

The following are significant events involving the airline or its subsidiares. The numbered events are those involving at least one airline passenger death where the aircraft flight had a direct or indirect role, and where at least one of the dead passengers was not a stowaway, hijacker, or saboteur. The airline began flight operations in 2009.

1. 24 August 2008; Itek Air 737-200; Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan: The aircraft was on a scheduled international flight from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, to Tehran, Iran. About 10 minutes after takeoff, the crew turned back to the departure airport and also reported some kind of technical problem, crashing short of the runway. There were about 83 passengers and seven crew on the aircraft, including 17 members of Kyrgyzstan's national basketball youth team. Seven team members reportedly survived. At least 65 of those on board, including five of the seven crew members, were killed.
   
   Itek Air had been banned from operating in the EU according to a list published on 24 July 2008.

   About the 737
   This was the 65th fatal event involving the 737, and the 47th involving the 737-200 series. The first 737-200 series aircraft began commercial operations in 1968, and the last 737-200 was delivered in 1988. The first fatal event for the 737 was a 737-200 crash in 1972. This latest crash was the 19th fatal 737 event since 2000, with 11 of the 19 involving a 737-200. The last fatal 737-200 event in North America or the European Union was a crash in Colorado Springs, CO in 1991.

   Initial Reports on the Event
   Audio: Initial Podcast 24 August 2008

   Video:  WMV |  iPod/MP4 |  YouTube

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   Initial accident report
   
   A transcript of the podcast is available at http://www.airsafe.com/podcasts/show63.htm

   For more videos, visit the AirSafe.com YouTube channel.

Map of Kyrgyzstan

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