"The fire is so severe that we cannot save anyone," Pir Hossein Koulivand, head of Iran's rescue services, told domestic television.

The plane belongs to Ukraine international airlines and crashed on agricultural land outside the capital Tehran. The crash occurred shortly after take-off from Imam Khomeini international airport.

Technical problems are called into question

The cause of the crash is suspected to be technical problems, according to Iranian television channel Fars. Flight journalist Jan Ohlsson thinks it is strange to go out with such an explanation so close in that the plane crashed.

- It's strange that you take this up with a technical flaw so early. I have never been aware of any official attempts to point this out. Then you have to explain what you know. But we have a lack of information from there so you have to wait before you dare speculate.

A hitherto unconfirmed video shows a burning plane crashing in the dark. Jan Ohlsson's assessment after seeing the pictures is that there is no likelihood of survivors of such a crash.

- It doesn't look very viable on the video that exists. Since the plane is also fully fueled at takeoff, there is a large explosion at the impact or something before.

Would lift earlier

According to Al-Jazeera, the plane would have taken off at 05.15, local time, but the departure was postponed for an hour. According to the Iranian Rescue Service, 22 ambulances, four ambulances and a helicopter are in place at the crashed plane.

This article will be updated