Ukrainian International Airlines flight PS752 was shot down shortly after departure from Tehran early morning 8 January 2020. The flight departed Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport at 02:42 UTC (06:12 local time) and the last ADS-B signal was received by the Flightradar24 network at 02:44 UTC.

Update 17 March 2021 — The Iranian Aircraft Accident investigation Board has released its final report.

The final report builds on the interim factual report as recounted below and provides details on the decision making processes between the Iranian military and civilian air traffic control.

As the Iran AAIB site seems to be having some issues with downloading the report, we have mirrored the report for download here. [English version of the report begins on page 140 of the PDF]

Update 23 July — French investigators with the BEA have completed the technical analysis of the Flight Data Recorder and Cockpit Voice Recorder.

Update 12 July — Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization released a factual report detailing the chain of events that led to the downing of PS 752.

The factual report details the chain of events, beginning with the relocation of a missile battery but no subsequent recalibration, leading to incorrect information about the true location of PS752 being relayed to the operator. The missile battery operator attempted to contact the Coordination Center, but was unable to relay specifications of perceived target. The battery operator at this point incorrectly classified PS752 as a threat.

Then, without communication from the Coordination Center (or authorization to fire), the operator fired a missile at PS752 at 02:44:41 UTC. The aircraft broadcast ADS-B data until the missile radio fuse activated at 02:44:59 after which the aircraft was tracked only by primary radar (last ADS-B data was received by the Flightradar24 network at 02:44:57, see Granular CSV below). The operator fired a second missile at 02:45:11. The final communication between the missile and the missile system occurred at 02:45:24 near the location of the aircraft. According to the report, a fire broke out on the aircraft at 02:46:11 and at 02:48:23 the aircraft crashed.

Read the full July 2020 factual report

This factual report is not a final report and the investigation is ongoing.

Update 11 January — Iran’s military announced that it ‘unintentionally’ shot down Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 as a result of human error.

Through the Islamic Republic News Agency the Armed Forces General Staff issued a statement saying PS752 was shot down by the Iranian military as a result of human error. You may read the full statement here.

Update 9 January — The Iranian Civil Aviation Organization has released an initial report on the crash. According to the report the aircraft climbed to 8000 feet and turned right back toward the airport and crashed at 06:18 local time (02:48 UTC)—four minutes after the last ADS-B signal was received by the Flightradar24 network.

The report also states, ‘The rescue and search operation team found the Aircraft black boxes, including the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), and is currently held by the investigation team of Iran AAIB. Both devices have been damaged as a result of the accident and catching fire. The memory parts of both recorders are in good conditions, though the physical damage to their main components is noticeable.’

You can read the full preliminary report (translated to English) here.

PS752 Data for download

PS 752 regular CSV file
PS 752 granular CSV file
PS 752 KML file

Important note regarding ADS-B altitude data

ADS-B altitude data is reported as the uncorrected pressure altitude above mean sea level. Values do not indicate the altitude above ground level.

PS752 Aircraft Information

PS752 was operated by a Boeing 737-800 (not MAX) registered UR-PSR. The aircraft was delivered new to Ukrainian Airlines in 2016. It is powered by two CFM56 engines.

Weather information

The METAR current at the time of departure indicated winds of 6 knots, good visibility, and a temperature of -1℃. The METARs before and after report similar conditions.

OIIE 080300Z 27006KT CAVOK M01/M04 Q1021
OIIE 080200Z 28006KT CAVOK M01/M04 Q1021 (METAR current at time of departure)
OIIE 080100Z 26006KT CAVOK M01/M04 Q1021

Other relevant flight information

There were 10 departures from Tehran-IKA from midnight local time 8 Jan through the departure of PS752 at 06:12 LT. Prior to PS752, the last flight movement at IKA was the departure of QR8408 at 05:39 local time.

Vertical track visualization

List of departing flights from Tehran 8 January

The follow flights departed on the morning of 8 January from IKA Airport in Tehran. Tehran time is +3:30 UTC.

PS752 flight path data over 3 months, November to January

The following images show the horizontal and vertical position of PS752 departures from November 2019 through 8 January 2020, displaying a total of 45 flights.

Featured image ©️ jeremy denton

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