Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashes in Kazakhstan: dozens killed
At least 38 people were killed and 29 injured after an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane crashed near Aktau airport in Kazakhstan on the morning of December 25, the ABC News representative of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan.
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The plane was flying from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny, Russia. It was diverted to Aktau, Kazakhstan, due to fog in Grozny, Russian news agencies reported.
Kazakhstan's Emergency Situations Ministry said there were 69 people on board the plane — 64 passengers and five crew members. Twenty-nine people survived the crash, many of whom were hospitalized, including two children.
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Kazakhstan's deputy health minister added that some of those hospitalized were in critical condition. The passengers included 37 Azerbaijani citizens, six people from Kazakhstan, three from Kyrgyzstan and 16 from Russia, the Transport Ministry said in a statement, citing preliminary data.
“The list of the dead and injured is being clarified,” the Ministry of Emergency Situations wrote on its official Telegram channel on December 25.
Preliminary data suggests that the crash may have been caused by a bird strike, which led to engine failure. This required an emergency landing, an Emergencies Ministry spokesman said.
However, at a press conference on December 25, officials said that the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office had opened a criminal case into the crash.
"The investigation is currently ongoing jointly with the Kazakh prosecutor's office. All versions are being examined in the criminal case," said Farid Huseynov, a representative of Azerbaijan Airlines.
An investigation is currently underway, with authorities in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia cooperating to determine the exact cause of the crash, the spokesman added.
"The investigation team at the crash site is receiving the necessary assistance from employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan," said Major General Chingis Arinov, Kazakhstan's Minister of Emergency Situations.
Aircraft manufacturer Embraer released a statement on the crash, saying: "We are closely monitoring the situation and continue to fully support the work of the relevant authorities."
Emergency response teams were sent to the crash site, including 432 workers and 79 pieces of equipment, as well as 10 canine units to conduct search operations. Rescuers are working around the clock, using special equipment.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev cancelled his planned participation in a Commonwealth of Independent States meeting in St. Petersburg on Dec. 25 after the crash, according to a transcript of a phone call between Aliyev and Russian President Putin released by his office.
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“The heads of state expressed condolences to each other, to the family members and loved ones of those killed in the plane crash, among whom were citizens of Azerbaijan, Russia and other countries, and wished a speedy recovery to the wounded,” the transcript says.
Speaking at a meeting in St Petersburg, Putin told participants that he had sent a Russian Emergencies Ministry team to Aktau “with medical personnel and the necessary additional equipment on board.”
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