Sharjah crash private jet model has relatively strong safety record

Identical version of Bombardier 604 made emergency landing in Muscat last year after incident with an Emirates superjumbo

A Bombardier CL604 aircraft, with tail number TC-TRB, descends to land in Istanbul. The Turkish private jet flying from the UAE to Istanbul carrying a group of young women crashed Sunday night. AP

In production since the late 1970s, the Bombardier Challenger 600 series of business jets has only been involved in a handful of accidents and incidents.

Until this week, the worst crash saw all three crew die when their aircraft hit the ground during a test flight in 2000 in Kansas.

Last January, another Bombardier of the same 604 model as the Iran crash was forced to make an emergency landing at Muscat Airport after plunging 9,000 feet when it was caught in wake turbulence of an Emirates Airbus 380 en route to Sydney.

The private jet, on a flight from the Maldives to Abu Dhabi's Al Bateen Executive Airport, suffered severe damage to its airframe and was written off.

Several of the nine passengers were treated in hospital, including one with serious injuries.

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Read more:

Private plane from Sharjah to Istanbul crashes killing all 11 women on board

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Who was Mina Basaran, the Turkish bride whose private Sharjah-Istanbul plane crashed?

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More than 1,000 of the jets have been produced, both for commercial use and military service, especially search and rescue.

Air forces operating the Challenger 600 include, China, the United States, Australia and South Korea.

With a crew of two, the jet can carry up to 11 passengers, with a range of 7,400 km and a top speed of 908kph.

The aircraft lost over Iran was delivered by Bombardier in 2001, according to the website planelogger.com.

It had been through four changes of ownership, including charter airlines in Switzerland, before being purchased by the current Turkish owners in 2012.