ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – An Iranian military plane crashed during a night training mission in western Iran, killing a pilot, state media reported Friday, with an investigation into the cause of the incident underway.

“On Thursday night, an army air force plane crashed while carrying out a night training mission in Hamedan province, and one of the pilots of the plane was martyred, and the other pilot of the plane is safe,” the Iranian state-owned IRNA news agency reported on Friday, citing the public relations of the Shahid Nojeh base.

The cause of the accident is under investigation, it added. 

The region remains under a heightened military presence and renewed threats of intervention by the US, although Washington and Tehran have restarted indirect nuclear talks, with both sides hailing progress made during the first rounds of the renewed negotiations.

On Thursday, US President Donald Trump said Washington will know within the next 10 days whether reaching a nuclear deal with Iran is possible, adding, “We have to make a meaningful deal; otherwise, bad things happen.”

Trump earlier in February confirmed reports of Washington sending a second “very big carrier to Iran” in case a deal is not reached with Tehran. 

The US is sending the USS Gerald R. Ford, the largest aircraft carrier in the world, to the Middle East to back up the USS Abraham Lincoln, which is already in the Gulf, AP reported Friday, citing a person familiar with the plans.

For its part, Tehran on Thursday began joint naval exercises with Russia in the Gulf of Oman, with troops practicing the seizure of vessels by fast-roping from helicopters, as tensions between the US and Iran remain high and the risk of military confrontation persists.

Iranian authorities condemned what they described as US threats and the rising military presence of American forces in the region.

The US has repeatedly highlighted that a naval “armada” is in range of a possible attack and has threatened to intervene on behalf of Iranian protesters who are facing brutal crackdowns by authorities. On the other hand, Iran has cited its significant distrust of Washington as a major obstacle to reaching an agreement.