Passenger Plane Crashes in Iran. Now Iran Won’t Turn Over Black Box to Boeing. | Eastern North Carolina Now

Publisher's note: This informational nugget was sent to me by Ben Shapiro, who represents the Daily Wire, and since this is one of the most topical news events, it should be published on BCN.

The author of this post is Ryan Saavedra.

    Ukrainian Boeing 737 spiraled toward earth while in a fireball over Tehran during the late night hours on Tuesday before slamming into the ground and killing all of the approximately 180 people on board. Iran is now refusing to hand over the black box to Boeing for analysis, according to Reuters.

    "Iran will not give the black box of the crashed Ukrainian airliner to plane maker Boeing, the head of Tehran's civil aviation organization was quoted as saying on Wednesday," Reuters reported. "Ali Abedzadeh also said it was not clear which country Iran would send the box to so that its data could be analyzed, semi-official Mehr news agency reported."

    "The Boeing Co. 737-800 single-aisle jet crashed after departing the Iranian capital's Imam Khomeini International Airport en route to Kyiv, with photos of the crash site showing thousands of pieces of scattered and charred debris," The Wall Street Journal reported. "Iran's official state news agency said the plane crashed because of an engine fire caused by a technical fault. It didn't explain how that conclusion was reached."

    The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a statement on the situation. "The Federal Aviation Administration issued Notices to Airmen (NOTAMS) tonight outlining flight restrictions that prohibit U.S. civil aviation operators from operating in the airspace over Iraq, Iran, and the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman," the statement reads. "The FAA will continue closely monitoring events in the Middle East. We continue coordinating with our national security partners and sharing information with U.S. air carriers and foreign civil aviation authorities."

    The passenger plane went down on the same night that Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles at U.S. forces stationed in Iraq. Initial reports suggest that there were no causalities from Iran's missile attack.

    Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Jonathan Hoffman issued the following statement Tuesday on the attacks:

• At approximately 5:30 p.m. (EST) on January 7, Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles against U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq. It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran and targeted at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. military and coalition personnel at Al-Assad and Irbil.
• We are working on initial battle damage assessments.
• In recent days and in response to Iranian threats and actions, the Department of Defense has taken all appropriate measures to safeguard our personnel and partners. These bases have been on high alert due to indications that the Iranian regime planned to attack our forces and interests in the region.
• As we evaluate the situation and our response, we will take all necessary measures to protect and defend U.S. personnel, partners, and allies in the region.
• Due to the dynamic nature of the situation, we will continue to provide updates as they become available.

    President Donald Trump posted an update on the assessment of the damage from the attacks on Twitter late Tuesday: "All is well! Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq. Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good! We have the most powerful and well equipped military anywhere in the world, by far! I will be making a statement tomorrow morning."