Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashes in Kazakhstan, near the city of Aktau, killing at least 38 people

An Azerbaijan Airlines airliner, which was operating a flight between Baku, the Azerbaijani capital, and Grozny, capital of the Russian Caucasian republic of Chechnya, crashed on Wednesday, December 25, near the city of Aktau , in Kazakhstan, local authorities announced.

“The situation is not very good,” the crash made “thirty-eight dead”, out of 67 people on board, Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev said during a meeting, quoted by the Russian agency Interfax. The country's Ministry of Emergency Situations, for its part, announced on Telegram that “29 people were hospitalized, including three children”.

The general prosecutor's office of Azerbaijan, a country in the Caucasus where the plane took off, had earlier stated that “32 people survived”without giving a death toll. “We cannot release the results of the investigation at this time. All possible scenarios are examined, and the necessary expertise is underway”added the prosecution, specifying that a team of Azerbaijani investigators went to Kazakhstan and “works on site”.

At a press conference, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev also said it was too early to speculate on the reasons for the accident, reporting however that weather conditions had forced the plane to change its trajectory. “According to information provided to me, the plane changed course between Baku and Grozny due to worsening weather conditions and headed towards Aktau airport, where it crashed upon landing »he declared.

For its part, the Kazakh Interior Ministry announced the opening of an investigation for “violation of air transport safety and operational rules”.

In videos published by Russian media, we see the plane hit the ground, a gigantic fire immediately breaking out. Other images show the plane on the ground, partially charred, the front of the aircraft having been completely destroyed. After the crash, “the plane caught fire”declared the Kazakh Emergency Situations Ministry, specifying that it had dispatched 150 rescuers to the scene.

Origin of crash unknown

According to Azerbaijan Airlines, 62 passengers and five crew members were on board the plane, which “made an emergency landing” about 3 kilometers from Aktau. “According to initial information, there were 37 Azerbaijani nationals, six Kazakh nationals, three Kyrgyz citizens and 16 Russian citizens” on board the aircraft, said the Kazakh transport ministry.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known. Azerbaijan Airlines initially claimed that the plane had hit a flock of birds, before withdrawing this information. For its part, the regional department of the Kazakh Ministry of Health reported, in a press release, a “balloon explosion” on board the aircraft, without further details.

According to the Flightradar24 service, which allows the movement of planes to be monitored in real time, the aircraft crossed the Caspian Sea by deviating from its normal route, before circling above the area where it crashed.

National day of mourning

The company deplored a “tragic day” sending its condolences to the victims' loved ones. “Their pain is our pain”she said in a press release.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who arrived in Russia to participate in an informal summit of leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) near St. Petersburg with Vladimir Putin on Wednesday, decided to interrupt his visit and return urgently in Azerbaijan, according to the press service of the Azerbaijani presidency.

“I extend my condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in this crash (…) and wishes a speedy recovery to the injured”declared Mr. Aliev, in a message on social networks. He also ordered to take “urgent measures to investigate the causes of the disaster” and declared a day of national mourning on Thursday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, according to the Kremlin, as did Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who also assured “pray to God for healing” wounded, on Telegram.

A plane from the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry is on its way to Aktau with “medical staff” and equipment, he later said during a meeting at the informal CIS summit.