Iranian fighter jet crashes in the country's south, killing 2 pilots

TEHRAN, Iran — An Iranian fighter jet crashed in the south of the country Wednesday, killing the two pilots, state media reported.

State television identified the pilots as Col. Hamid Reza Ranjbar and Col. Manouchehr Pirzadeh, saying they were on a test flight after the plane was overhauled. The crash took place near the town of Firouzabad, some 770 kilometers (480 miles) south of the capital Tehran.

The report did not elaborate on the type of plane or provide a cause for the crash. Video on the semiofficial Fars news agency, which is close to the military, showed columns of white smoke billowing from the remains of the aircraft.

Iran’s air force has an assortment of U.S.-made military aircraft purchased before the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the Tomcat F-14 is American-made. It also has Russian-made MiG and Sukhoi planes. Decades of Western sanctions have made it hard to obtain spare parts and maintain the aging aircraft.

The country has a history of similar crashes among its faltering fleet. In 2022, a fighter jet crashed in the central desert of Iran, killing both pilots. Prior to that in the same year, a fighter jet plunged onto a soccer field in the northwestern city of Tabriz, killing both pilots and a civilian.