An Azerbaijan Airlines airliner, an Embraer 190, flying from Baku to Grozny, crashed in Aktau, Kazakhstan, on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. The causes of the accident are still uncertain. Russian news agencies said the plane was diverted due to fog. According to the Russian news agency Interfax, Kazakhstan authorities have begun investigating the incident, evaluating possible explanations, including a technical problem. According to Sputnik Azerbaijan, which cites airline sources, the causes of the accident were linked to a collision of the aircraft with a flock of birds. There were 67 people on board the plane, 62 passengers and five crew members, reports the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan. Among them are 37 citizens of Azerbaijan, 16 Russians, six citizens of Kazakhstan and three more from Kyrgyzstan.
Information on the number of survivors of the crash is still uncertain. According to Kazakhstan's Ministry of Health, there were 28 survivors. Russian media reports that a special investigation will be conducted in connection with the accident, Kazakhstan's Ministry of Transport said.
As for the dynamics of the crash, according to what was reconstructed by the authorities, the plane was flying from Baku to Grozny, but after a collision with a flock of birds, the commander apparently decided to go to an alternative airport, choosing Aktau, in Kazakhstan, as the landing site. But the landing was unsuccessful and the plane crashed to the ground around 9.30 am Moscow time, 7.30 am in Italy. The bodies of four victims have so far been found.
After the incident, Azerbaijani President Aliyev decided to return to Baku from the informal CIS summit, which is taking place in the Leningrad region of Russia. 150 people and 45 vehicles are working at the site of the accident, writes Tass. Azerbaijan Airlines has published the list of passengers who were on board the plane.
