A Boeing 737-500 operated by Iranian airline Sepehran Airlines veered off the runway while landing at Mashhad Airport on Tuesday evening, August 25. According to aviation safety website The Aviation Herald, the aircraft, registration EP-FSF, was operating flight IS-4310 from Tehran Mehrabad to Mashhad with 127 people on board. The aircraft landed on runway 13R but subsequently veered off the runway and came to a stop.
The status of the aircraft’s nose landing gear remains unclear. The Aviation Herald reports that the nose gear was either still retracted or had collapsed during the runway excursion.
All passengers and crew were safely evacuated, with the airport reporting that everyone on board was in good health. No fatalities or injuries have been reported.
Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization has opened an investigation into the incident. Runway 13R and taxiway Q were subsequently closed due to the disabled aircraft.
Former Sabena aircraft
The incident also has a Belgian connection. The Boeing 737-500, EP-FSF, is a former Sabena aircraft.
The aircraft, Boeing 737-529 with construction number 26537, was delivered to Sabena in 1992 and operated for the Belgian airline under registration OO-SYJ.
After Sabena ceased operations in 2001, the aircraft passed through several operators and registrations before eventually joining Sepehran Airlines as EP-FSF.
The aircraft is therefore more than 34 years old and has spent much of its career flying with airlines in different parts of the world.
At the time of the accident, weather conditions at Mashhad were good, with clear visibility and only light winds reported.
The investigation will now have to determine why the Boeing 737 left the runway after landing and establish whether the nose landing gear played a role in the incident.
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