(CNN) -- A Iran-bound Boeing 737 with 90 people on board crashed Sunday near the airport in Kyrgyzstan's capital, Bishkek, killing dozens of passengers, a government official said.
The Boeing 737 crashed near the Bishkek airport in Kyrgyzstan on Sunday.
The six crew members survived the crash, Ramis Satybekov, an official from Kyrgyzstan's Emergency Situations Ministry, told CNN. While he didn't have exact figures, he said roughly 60 passengers were killed and more than 20 people injured were taken to local hospitals, he said.
Among the passengers was a Iranian airline representative, but his status was unknown, Satybekov said. Most of the 83 passengers were Iranian or Kyrgyz nationals. The crash happened near the U.S. military's Manas Air Base, which is helping with the emergency response.
Flight IRC6895 took off at 8:30 p.m., but turned around a few minutes later after experiencing "technical difficulties," a spokeswoman at Manas International Airport told CNN. The crash happened minutes later, said the spokeswoman, who would not give her name.
The Aseman Airlines flight, operated by Kyrgyzstan-based Itek Air, was bound for Tehran, Iran, an airport spokeswoman said. U.S. Air Force Maj. Damian Pickart said Kyrgyz authorities asked Manas Air Base for support shortly after the Aseman jet crashed about six miles off the runway.
"The 376th Air Expeditionary Wing provided two large fire trucks, an ambulance and nearly two dozen medical and fire and crash support personnel to the scene of the accident," according to a military news release.
"Medical personnel have also been requested to provide support at the Manas International Airport Terminal, which is adjacent to the base."
Manas is a key support base for the U.S.-led military operation in Afghanistan.
