An international investigation has begun into how an Embraer 190 passenger jet with 67 people onboard crashed on the Caspian Sea coast of Kazakhstan, killing 38 people but leaving 29 survivors
Azerbaijan Airlines flight J28243, which had been flying from Baku to Grozny, the capital of Russia‘s Chechnya, crash-landed instead at the airport of the Kazakh city of Aktau.
Unverified video footage of the crash showed the aircraft descending – apparently with control problems – and hitting the ground where it burst into flames.
Children were among the survivors being treated at a nearby hospital, Azeri authorities said in a statement.
Some of the videos posted on social media showed survivors dragging fellow passengers away from the wreckage.
Azeri president Ilham Aliyev said that it was too soon to speculate on the reasons behind the crash, but said bad weather in Grozny had forced the flight to divert.
“The information provided to me is that the plane changed its course between Baku and Grozny due to worsening weather conditions and headed to Aktau airport, where it crashed upon landing,” he said.
Commercial aviation-tracking websites monitored the flight as it flew north on its scheduled route along the west coast of the sea before its flight path was no longer recorded. It then reappeared on the opposite, east coast, where it circled near Aktau airport before crashing into the beach.
Kazakjh officials said those aboard the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian nationals, six Kazakhs and three Kyrgyzstan nationals. Five of the 67 were crew.
President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences, while Aliyev decided to return home from Russia where he had been due to attend a summit.
“Unfortunately, Azerbaijan’s president Aliyev was forced to leave St Petersburg (where he had a summit). Putin has already called him and expressed his condolences in connection with the crash of the Azerbaijani plane in Aktau,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
“We deeply sympathise with those who lost their relatives and friends in this plane crash and wish a speedy recovery to all those who managed to survive.”
Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-backed leader of Chechnya, expressed his condolences in a statement and said some of those being treated in hospital were in an extremely serious condition and that he and others would pray for their recovery.
Kazakhstani, Azerbaijani and Russian authorities said they were investigating the crash. Embraer said in a statement it is “ready to assist all relevant authorities.”
Azerbaijan Airlines suspended all its flights from Baku to Russia’s Chechnya until the investigation is finished, Russia’s state TASS news agency reported.
Additional reporting by agencies
