An Iranian passenger plane has crashed into the country’s Zagros mountains with more than 50 people on board, the head of the country’s emergency services told local media on Sunday (February 18).

“This plane has crashed in the Semirom area and all emergency forces are on alert. The plane had 50 to 60 passengers,” Pir Hossein Koolivand told the Fars news agency.

State-run PressTV said 66 people were on board the flight, which disappeared from radar screens 50 minutes after taking on from Mehrabad airport in Tehran.

Harsh weather situation is currently causing difficulty to conduct rescue operations, Iranian media further reports.

The plane was reportedly travelling from Tehran to the small town of Yasuj in Isfahan province.

Semirom lies in the mountainous southwestern region of Iran, around 480 kilometres (300 miles) south of the capital.

"An ATR aircraft of Aseman Airlines with 60 passengers and about six crews disappeared from radar this morning," Aladin Borujerdi, head of parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, told the semi-official ISNA news agency.

"Observation by people (in the area) indicates a crash," he said, adding that he was still awaiting confirmation.

Mojtaba Khaledi, spokesman for the national emergency services, told the semi-official ISNA news agency that a helicopter had been sent to the area.

"Given the fact that the area is mountainous, it is not possible to send ambulances," he said.

BDST: 1430 HRS, FEB 18, 2018
AP