The unusual event took place at Konarak Airport in the city of Chabahar, in southern Iran. The German website Bild reported that an aircraft mechanic was sucked into the engine of a Boeing 737-500, resulting in his immediate death.
Amiri Abolfazl, an aircraft mechanic at the airport, began checking the plane's operational readiness after it had arrived earlier with passengers from Tehran. During the check, the right engine of the plane was activated, while a sterile area was opened to prevent injuries.
Suddenly, the mechanic realized he had forgotten one of his tools near the plane, which was in the middle of tests and engine inspections.
At this point, Amiri made a fatal mistake. He went back to retrieve the tool that was near the engine, apparently without noticing that the aircraft, owned by the Iranian Varesh Airlines, had started its tests. The mechanic was sucked into the plane's engine, dying on the spot.
In addition, the plane's engine caught fire, rendering the aircraft inoperable. The German site Bild noted that rescue forces arrived quickly but found that there was no possibility of saving the mechanic.
This latest event is one in a series of similar incidents and tragedies in recent years. Last May, a person was killed after being sucked into the engine of a KLM passenger plane at Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands. In that incident, passengers on the plane described a "terrible noise coming from the engine."
