Horror as mechanic sucked into running Boeing plane engine as he tried to retrieve a tool

A mechanic was killed after being sucked into the running engine of a Boeing aircraft during routine maintenance work last Wednesday.

Abolfazl Amiri, a local airport mechanic, was dragged into a running CFM56-3 aircraft engine that quickly caught fire at Chabahar Konarak Airport in southern Iran.

It is believed Mr Amiri returned to the right side engine for a forgotten tool after doing maintenance work on the 26-year-old Varesh Airlines Boeing 737-500.

The Boeing plane, manned by the domestic Iranian carrier, had landed in Charbahar from Tehran at 7.15am with all passengers and crew deplaned before Mr Amiri started his mechanical work.

According to Bild, a German news outlet, at the time of the tragic incident the engine had been started for a test run with the cover flaps open and a safety area was set up around the engine – in line with standard safety procedures.

Mr Amiri’s remains were recovered from the scene after the airport’s emergency services and fire brigade arrived and extinguished the alight engine with water, reported the outlet.

A labour source told Aviation24.be: “In the morning of July 3rd, one of the specialists of Varesh Airlines, during the pilot’s power-up for reasons requiring investigation and analysis by air accident specialists at the accident site, suddenly found himself in the air suction path of the engine intake and was pulled into the CFM56-3 turboprop engine installed on a Boeing 737, dying instantly.”

The Iranian aviation authority has launched an investigation into the fatal accident.

The Independent have contacted Varesh Airlines for comment.

It’s not the first fatal incident involving an aircraft engine this year.

In May, a person was killed after falling into the engine of a KLM aircraft that was about to take off from Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam.

The plane, which was bound for Billund in Denmark, had been reversing at the time, according to local media.

A police spokesperson said: “An incident occurred this afternoon on the Schiphol platform where a person fell into a running aircraft engine and died. The Marechaussee starts an investigation.”

For more travel news and advice listen to Simon Calder’s podcast.