An Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane flying from Baku to Grozny crashed and caught fire near the Kazakh city of Aktau on the morning of December 25. As per preliminary reports, 28 of the 67 people on board survived.
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Eyewitnesses told the publication Orda.kz that an oxygen tank on board the crashed plane exploded. They also reported that birds had gotten into the engine before takeoff.
The Embraer 190 was carrying 62 passengers and 5 crew members. Based on Kazakh media, two injured teenagers, aged 11 and 16, were also taken to the hospital.
The plane was originally supposed to land at Grozny airport but was diverted to Makhachkala due to heavy fog.
According to Azerbaijan Airlines, initial information suggests that the cause of the crash was a collision between the plane and a flock of birds.
Following the incident, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev instructed a delegation of government representatives to fly to Aktau to investigate the circumstances.
Azerbaijan Airlines, founded in 1992, is the largest airline and the national flagship of Azerbaijan.
