Iran refuses to hand over black box of crashed Ukrainian plane

TEHRAN (92 News) – Iran on Wednesday refused to hand over black box of Boeing 737-800 passenger jet crashed Ukrainian plane. According to the foreign media, a Boeing 737-800 passenger jet crashed in Iran shortly after takeoff. The Ukraine International Airlines plane had been flying from Tehran to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Iranian investigators have found one of the plane's two so-called black boxes, but the head of the country's civil aviation authority has refused to hand it over to Boeing, the local Mehr news agency reported. Ali Abedzadeh, the civil aviation chief, added that he wasn't sure where he would send the box to analyze the data, Mehr added. Black boxes record flight data and audio from the cockpit and often provide valuable information on how plane crashes occur. Boeing has faced heavy scrutiny in recent months over two plane crashes involving its 737 Max jet, both of which also took place shortly after takeoff. The 737-800 and 737 Max are distinct models of the plane. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Iranian authorities are refusing to hand over a flight recorder recovered from Wednesday's plane crash in Iran to Boeing, the plane's manufacturer, according to Iranian media. Crash investigators had found one of the two so-called black boxes from the Boeing 737-800 that crashed near Tehran at about 6:20 a.m. on Wednesday, Iran's state media reported. All 176 people aboard the flight were killed. Black boxes record flight data and audio from the cockpit, and they often provide valuable insights into how a crash took place. Ali Abedzadeh, the head of Iran's civil aviation authority, said Iran would not give the black box to Boeing, according to Reuters, which cited the semiofficial Mehr news agency. He did not appear to specify a reason. Abedzadeh also said he wasn't sure where Iran would send the box to analyze the data, Reuters cited Mehr as reporting. Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider on the Iranian refusal. The flight, operated by Ukraine International Airlines, was scheduled to travel between Tehran and the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. The crashed Boeing 737-800 jet was just three years old and underwent scheduled maintenance checks on Monday, two days before the crash. Data from the flight-tracking service FlightRadar 24 appeared to show the plane departing from Tehran, with communication being lost approximately three minutes later.