Bad weather hampers search for missing Iranian plane

TEHRAN, Feb 19 (AFP): Iranian rescue teams battled severe weather Monday as they searched for the wreckage of a passenger plane that disappeared high in the Zagros mountains the previous day with 66 people on board.

Several helicopters that had deployed at dawn to hunt for Aseman Airlines flight EP3704 were forced to return to base, officials said.

"Unfortunately due to strong winds and fog reducing visibility, it was not possible for helicopters to continue their search," a Red Crescent official told the ISNA news agency.

Officials said hundreds of mountaineers, supported by dogs and drones, were operating around the 14,465-foot (4,409-metre) Dena mountain, which is popular with Iranians seeking to prepare for climbing in the Himalayas.

The ATR-72 twin-engine plane, in service since 1993, flew early Sunday from Mehrabad airport towards the city of Yasuj, some 500 kilometres (300 miles) to the south.

The plane's emergency locator transmitter was reportedly not functioning, helping to explain the difficulty in finding the wreckage.