Azerbaijan Airlines Plane Crash: 38 Dead, 29 Survivors
A tragic incident occurred on Dec. 25 morning in Aktau, Kazakhstan, when an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed while flying from Baku to Grozny. The plane was carrying 67 people, including 62 passengers and five crew members. Unfortunately, 38 people lost their lives in the crash, including six Kazakh nationals, while 29 survivors were able to escape.
Among the passengers on board, there were citizens from Azerbaijan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The Kazakh Emergency Ministry reported that 23 Azerbaijan citizens died, along with seven Russian citizens and six Kazakh nationals. The crew of five members also experienced casualties, with two fatalities and three survivors.
The crash site has been secured, and investigations are currently underway. The aircraft’s black box has been recovered, and authorities are working diligently to determine the cause of the accident. It was revealed that the Embraer 190 jet had reported a bird hit to the dispatcher before entering Kazakhstan’s airspace and ultimately crashing during its third spin near the Aktau airstrip.
Embraer, the manufacturer of the aircraft, expressed their condolences to the families and loved ones of the passengers affected by the tragedy. President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has ordered a comprehensive inquiry into the incident, with a special committee overseeing the proceedings. Medical staff and trauma specialists have been sent to Aktau to provide assistance to the survivors, and the case is being closely monitored by Kazakhstan’s Prosecutor General.
Efforts to deal with the aftermath of the crash include the deployment of 490 workers, 97 pieces of equipment, two airplanes, and ten canine teams. The entire nation mourns the loss of those who perished in the crash, and our thoughts are with the survivors as they recover from this traumatic experience.
