Iran: ‘Human Error’ Caused Ukraine Crash

[NewsReporter]

VOA - World News

FILE - Security officers and Red Crescent workers are seen at the site where the Ukraine International Airlines plane crashed after take-off from Iran's Imam Khomeini airport, on the outskirts of Tehran, Jan. 8, 2020.

Iran claims “human error” was responsible for the downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane earlier this year that killed all 176 people on board.

The Iranian Civil Aviation authority said late Saturday, “A failure occurred due to a human error in following the procedure” for aligning the radar.

The misalignment caused a “107-degree error” in the system, Iran said.

On the same night of the plane downing, Iran had launched a ballistic missile attack targeting U.S. soldiers in Iran.

The attack was in response to the killing of one of Iran’s top generals in a U.S. missile strike in Iraq.

Scenes of Mourning, Anger in Wake of Ukraine Plane Crash

Iranian officials, after days of denials, admitted Jan. 11, 2020, that Tehran was responsible for mistakenly downing a Ukrainian airliner early on Jan. 8. Iran’s admission sparked anti-government protests in Tehran. Demonstrators gathered at two universities, where some called for the resignation of their country's leaders.