An Aria Air plane operated by Aria Tour crash-landed at the airport of Mashhad in north-eastern Iran on Friday.

At least 30 people have been killed and 20 others have been injured, the Iranian television Press TV reported.

The crash occurred at 2:30 p.m. GMT. The plane's tires caught fire on landing and it skidded into a wall. The cockpit and the front part of the fuselage were completely destroyed in the crash, the Press TV reported.

It also said that there were 160 passengers and crewmembers onboard the plane.

A spokesman for the airport told Press TV that emergency services were carrying the injured to nearby hospitals, adding that full information on deaths and injuries will be provided later.

The Ilyushin Il-62M en route to Mashhad from Tehran had to make an emergency landing due to undisclosed difficulties.

Earlier this month an Iranian plane flying to Armenia crashed in northwestern Iran, killing all 168 people aboard.