Moscow, 25 December
An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed today in the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan. More than 30 people are expected to be killed in this incident. The officials gave this information. He said that 67 people were on board the plane and at least 32 people have survived.
Five crew members were among those on board the plane, Kazakhstan’s Emergencies Ministry said in a telegram statement. At least 29 people have been admitted to hospital, the ministry told Russia’s official news agency ‘Ria Novosti’.
The Russian news agency “Interfax” reported in its news, quoting health workers, that four bodies have been recovered and emergency service personnel present at the scene said that according to the preliminary assessment, both pilots have been killed in the accident.
Azerbaijan Airlines had earlier said its Embraer 190 plane had to make an emergency landing three kilometers from the city. Kazakhstan’s Emergencies Ministry initially said that 25 people had survived the accident. Later he said this number was 27 and then 28 and 29 and then 32. The Prosecutor General’s Office of Azerbaijan later stated that at least 32 people died in the accident and that the number was not final. The plane had flown from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grunzi, Russia. According to Azerbaijan Airlines, 37 passengers on board were citizens of Azerbaijan. Apart from this, there were 16 Russian citizens, six from Kazakhstan and three from Kyrgyzstan.
A spokesman for Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency said initial information indicated that the pilot decided to divert the plane to Aktau after a bird struck the plane and had to make an emergency landing.
Mobile phone footage surfacing online shows the plane plummeting to the ground and bursting into flames. Another footage showed the rear of the plane being detached from the propellers and the rest lying upside down in the grass. In some videos posted on social media, survivors can be seen pulling fellow passengers from the wreckage. – Ap
