Tycoon's Daughter, Friends Die in Jet Crash

11 die after jet crashes in Iran mountain
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 12, 2018 5:22 AM CDT
Updated Mar 12, 2018 6:27 AM CDT
Tycoon's Daughter, Friends Die in Jet Crash
The Bombardier CL604 aircraft that belonged to Basaran Holdings.   (AP Photo/Yigit Cicekci)

The daughter of a Turkish billionaire died along with seven friends and three crew members when the private jet bringing her home from her bachelorette party in the United Arab Emirates crashed. Mina Basaran, 28, was the daughter of Basaran Holdings chief Huseyin Basaran and was part of the company's board of managers, reports the New York Times. Posts on Basaran's Instagram page show her with her seven female friends in Dubai. Authorities say the passengers were listed as six Turkish citizens and two Spaniards. The jet, bound for Istanbul, crashed in the remote Zagros Mountains in southern Iran, authorities say. Iran's Civil Aviation Authority says the plane dropped off the radar soon after the pilot asked to fly at a lower altitude.

All three crew members were also female, including captain Melike Kuvvet, who was one of the first female pilots in the Turkish military before she started flying private jets, the National reports. Heavy winds and rain made it impossible for helicopters to land near the crash site Sunday, though authorities say the black box has now been recovered, which will make it easier to determine why the Bombardier CL604 crashed, the AP reports. A witness told Iranian state TV that the jet appeared to be on fire before it slammed into a mountain. According to Turkish media, Basaran, whose company operates in the construction, food, energy, and finance sectors, has now traveled to Iran along with Turkish diplomats. (More plane crash stories.)

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