Dozens of passengers fear for their lives after an Azerbaijani Airlines flight crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, reports said.
The Embraer 190 passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia had 62 passengers and five crew members on board, Kazakh officials announced. It said 32 survivors had been rescued.
Flight J2-8243 traveled hundreds of miles from its scheduled route and crashed on the opposite coast of the Caspian Sea. Authorities did not immediately explain why it had crossed the sea. But the accident occurred shortly after the drone attack in southern Russia. Drone activity has shut down airports in this area in the past. And the nearest Russian airport on the plane’s flight path was closed on Wednesday morning.
Russia’s aviation watchdog said it was an emergency possibly caused by a bird collision.
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In this image taken from a video released by the Mangystau region administration, the remains of an Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 plane lie on the ground near Aktau Airport, Kazakhstan. On Wednesday, December 1, 25 Nov. 2024 (Regional Administration Mangystau/AP Photo)
Those on board the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russians, six Kazakhs and three Kyrgyzstanis, according to Kazakh officials.
Russia’s Interfax news agency reported that Both pilots died in the accident. It is based on the initial assessment by emergency personnel at the scene. The news agency also quoted medical officials as saying that so far four bodies have been recovered from the accident.
A total of 29 survivors, including two children, were hospitalized. The ministry told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, according to the Associated Press, that many passengers had not yet been determined.
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More than 30 people are feared dead after an accident near the Kazakh city of Aktau. (Azamat Sarsenbayev/AP photo)
Video of the crash shows the plane descending quickly before bursting into flames as it hit the seashore. and thick black smoke rose up. Reuters reports Bloodied and bruised passengers could be seen stumbling from parts of the fuselage that were still intact.
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan which is traveling to Russia Returned to Azerbaijan upon hearing the news of this accident. The presidential press service said Aliyev was due to attend an informal meeting of leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States. It is a group of former Soviet countries established after the collapse of the Soviet Union. in the city of St. Petersburg St. Petersburg
Emergency crews at the scene of the Azerbaijani passenger plane crash on December 1, 2018, 25 Nov 2024. (Azamat Sarsenbayev/AP photo)
Aliyev expressed his condolences to the victims’ families in a statement on social media.
“My deepest condolences to the victim’s family. And we wish the injured a speedy recovery,” he wrote.
He also signed a decree declaring December 10, 26 days of mourning in Azerbaijan.
The plane was traveling from Baku. capital of Azerbaijan to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus, the Associated Press reports. (Regional Administration Mangystau/AP Photo)
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In a statement, Azerbaijan Airlines said it would keep the public updated. and change social media banners to solid black.
“We ask for mercy for the passengers and crew who lost their lives,” he said. The statement about X said: “Their pain is our pain. We hope the injured recover quickly.”
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
