Iran: Hercules plane crashes into tower flats

What i cant understand is why this building didnt collapse like a deck of cards??? I mean thats what happens when a plane that big crashes into a building right??? or so we are told.

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Many killed in Tehran plane crash

Burning building in Tehran (photo: Ahmed Reza Shojaie, ILNA)






The building was engulfed in flames after the crash
An Iranian military plane with 94 people on board has crashed into a 10-storey apartment building in a built-up suburb of the capital Tehran.

There was a huge explosion and fire in the building. Police said everyone had died on the plane and many deaths were feared on the ground.

The C-130 plane had just taken off from Mehrabad airport when the pilot reported an emergency and turned back.

He apparently lost control as he attempted to land.

Emergency services went to the scene in the Yaftabad district and the area was sealed off while the fires were extinguished.

Scores of people were taken to hospitals suffering from burns and the effects of smoke.

The semi-official Fars news agency said at least 40 bodies had been recovered so far.

Tehran state radio said at least 34 people had been killed in the building and 90 were injured.



Crash in pictures

Schools were closed on Tuesday because of high smog levels, raising fears that more children than usual would have been at home when the plane crashed at 1410 local time (1040 GMT).

Eyewitnesses reported that relatives of those inside the residential block where the plane crashed were so desperate that they broke down a 3m (10ft) tall metal gate to get inside.

Journalists at the site have reported being beaten by police. They said police broke two cameras belonging to state television and confiscated tapes and all mobile phones being used to take pictures.

The plane had been due to fly Bandar Abbas in the south-west of Iran. Passengers included more than 70 journalists and photographers sent to cover military exercises there.

'Big bang'

One shopkeeper described how something appeared to be wrong with the plane before it crashed.

"We are used to aeroplanes but I thought: 'Oh my God, this one is going to crash'. Then it struck the building with a big bang and smoke came pouring out."


IRAN'S AIR DISASTERS
Feb 04: Iranian plane crashes near Sharjah airport in UAE, killing 43 people
Feb 03: Military transport aircraft crashes in southern Iran, killing 302 people
Dec 02: Commuter plane carrying aerospace experts crashes in Iran, killing 46 people
Feb 02: Tu-154 operated by Iran Air crashes in mountains in west of Iran, killing 117 people
March 97: 80 die when a military plane crashes in north-east Iran
Feb 93: Tu-154 crashes into a military plane near Tehran, killing 132
BBCPersian.com reader Amir, who reached the scene shortly after the crash, said the building was engulfed in smoke and dust and a huge fire swept through the block before the fire brigade arrived.

"The scene of crash was very bad. Very soon we saw bodies carried away," he said.

The Iranian air force is believed to have about 15 ageing US-made C-130s in operation, dating back to before the 1979 Islamic revolution and the US boycott of Iran.

The country's civil and military aircraft have a poor safety record.

In 2003, an Iranian Ilyushin-76 troop carrier crashed in south-east Iran killing all 276 Revolutionary Guard soldiers and crew aboard.

Officials blame the high frequency of crashes on a lack of aviation spare parts due to US sanctions.

Mehrabad is the oldest airport in Tehran and handles both domestic and military flights.

When it was built more than 60 years ago it was located outside the capital, but with the growth of Tehran's urban sprawl the airport has become surrounded by residential areas.

Heavy-lift transport aircraft built by Lockheed Martin, known as the Hercules in the UK
Iran has some 15 C-130 E and H types dating from the mid 1970s
A modern US variant is the AC-130 - a heavily armed gunship version - used in Iraq and Afghanistan
First flew: 1956
Max. take off weight: 69,750kg

Engines: 4 Allison turboprops
Range: 2,356 miles
Source: FAS/GlobalSecurity