Azerbaijan Airlines Plane Crash in Kazakhstan Leaves 35 Dead, 32 Survivors: Tragedy Strikes

Survivor Captures Harrowing Footage from Crashed Azerbaijan Airlines Flight

A survivor of a crashed Azerbaijan Airlines flight managed to record footage from inside the cabin on Wednesday. The plane with 62 passengers and five crew members on board crashed in Kazakhstan, with 32 survivors rescued from the site. The crash occurred hundreds of miles off its scheduled route, after an emergency that may have been caused by a bird strike. The plane was flying from Baku on the western shore of the Caspian Sea to the city of Grozny in Chechnya in southern Russia. A harrowing video taken by a passenger inside the cabin of the crashed plane has been shared widely on social media, showing the final moments of the doomed plane.

Fatal Crash Near Aktau Claims 35 Lives, Survivors Struggle for Survival

Thirty-five people were killed in the crash near Aktau, an oil and gas hub on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. In the video, the passenger is heard saying “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) as the plane goes into a steep descent. Yellow oxygen masks were seen dangling over the seats. Screaming and crying were heard amid the soft doorbell-like sound of the ‘wear seatbelt’ light. Azerbaijani authorities said 32 people survived the crash of the Embraer 190, a narrow-body passenger aircraft. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev declared Thursday a day of national mourning and cancelled a planned visit to Russia for an informal summit of leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a grouping of former Soviet nations.

Emergency Response and International Condolences Following the Disaster

The Kazakh emergency situations ministry said its staff put out a fire that broke out when the plane crashed. A special flight was being sent from the Kazakh capital Astana with specialist doctors to treat the injured. Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation with Aliyev and expressed his condolences in connection with the crash. A Russian emergency situations ministry had been sent to Aktau with medical personnel and other equipment. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov expressed his condolences to the relatives of the passengers of the Azerbaijan Airlines jet who died. The survivors, including two children, were receiving medical attention at a nearby hospital. Efforts were made to recover the bodies of the dead.

Preliminary Findings Suggest Bird Strike Led to Emergency Landing Attempt

Azerbaijan Airlines reported that the Embraer 190 jet had been en route from Baku to Grozny, the capital of Chechnya in southern Russia. However, an emergency forced the aircraft to attempt a landing approximately 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from Aktau, Kazakhstan. Russia’s aviation watchdog said preliminary findings suggest a collision with birds caused an emergency situation on board, prompting the pilot to divert to an alternate airfield. According to Russia’s aviation watchdog, “Preliminary findings suggest a collision with birds caused an emergency situation on board, prompting the pilot to divert to an alternate airfield. Aktau was selected.”

What caused the Azerbaijan Airlines flight to crash?

Preliminary findings suggest that the crash may have been caused by a bird strike, which led to an emergency situation on board. The pilot attempted an emergency landing in Kazakhstan, but the plane crashed about 3 kilometers from the intended landing site.

What is the status of the investigation into the crash?

Russia’s aviation watchdog is investigating the cause of the crash, with preliminary findings suggesting that the bird strike may have caused the emergency. Efforts are ongoing to recover the bodies of the deceased and continue the investigation.