A passenger plane travelling from Baku to Grozny in Kazakhstan crashed near the city of Aktau. According to Tengrinews, the crew signaled an emergency before the crash occurred.
The Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan confirmed that the Embraer E190 aircraft, operated by Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL), was carrying 62 passengers and 5 crew members. Among the passengers were 37 citizens of Azerbaijan, 16 citizens of Russia, 6 citizens of Kazakhstan, and 3 citizens of Kyrgyzstan.
Rescue teams from the Kazakhstan Ministry of Emergency Situations, along with 14 ambulances, were dispatched to the crash site. Reports indicate that 28 people have been rescued, including one child. The injured passengers were transferred to Mangistau Regional Hospital in Aktau, where Kazakhstan Health Minister Akmaral Alnazarova stated that the condition of six individuals was critical.
Preliminary investigations suggest the crash may have been caused by a collision with a flock of birds. Azerbaijan Airlines reported that the aircraft crashed near Aktau Airport while attempting to land on a spare runway.
According to officials from Grozny Airport, the aircraft was initially diverted to Makhachkala due to dense fog in Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, and later rerouted to Aktau. The crew signaled an emergency at 08:35, citing a malfunction in the aircraft control system. Emergency landing permission was requested at 08:49, and the crew attempted a manual landing in direct mode. However, the aircraft struck the ground at 09:28.
Authorities, including Rosaviatsiya (Russian Civil Aviation Authority) and aviation officials from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, are investigating the incident. A government commission was established on the instructions of Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to determine the cause of the crash.
In response to the tragedy, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev cancelled his participation in the informal CIS Summit in Russia and decided to return to Baku.
