"Tehran’s civil aviation authority have also invited other interested countries to participate in reading the data," he said.

 A Ukrainian passenger jet, which was a scheduled international flight from Tehran to Kiev, was shot down shortly after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport on January 8, 2020. All 176 passengers and crew were killed; it was the first fatal air accident for Ukraine International Airlines.

The crash came about four hours after Iran launched retaliatory missile strikes on U.S. positions in Iraq for the killing of Major General Qasem Soleimani. Iran was on the highest state of defensive alert and, according to Commander of the Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Amir Ali Hajizadeh, was "totally prepared for a full-fledged war". (ILKHA)