Iran banned flights of all its ATR-72 aircraft following the crash of an ATR passenger plane which claimed the lives of 66 people on board this week, IRNA reports.

"In order to make sure about improvement of this type of aircraft's safety, it is necessary to stop their flights temporarily,' the Civil Aviation Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran's Public Relations Department said in a statement on Friday, February 23.

The statement noted that Iran's Aseman Airlines ATR72-200 and ATR72-500 flights will be banned until further notice.

It said that the ATR72 fights have also been banned to study their level of safety.

An ATR passenger plane belonging to Aseman Airline crashed close to Semirom, south of Isfahan Province, on Sunday when it was flying from Tehran to Yassouj, southwestern Iran.

All 66 passengers and crew members onboard the plane lost their lives in the incident.

Some 20 rescue teams have been stationed near the wreckage of the crashed plane to transport the dead bodies. It has been announced that 32 bodies have been spotted. The bodies will be transported to Yassouj, capital city of Kohkiloyeh-Boyer Ahmad Province for identification.