A total of 38 people were killed when the Embraer jet landed at high speed and burst into flames 3 kilometres from the runway at Aktau airport.
The flight had initially attempted a landing at Grozny airport in southern Russia, but people have reported seeing an explosion before its diversion across the Caspian Sea towards Kazakhstan.
Russia’s civil aviation agency head reported that the situation in the Chechen capital had been “very complicated” and that a protocol of closed-skies was being followed.
As per Dmitry Yadrov, Head of Rosaviatsia (Russia’s federal agency for air transport), Ukrainian combat drones had been launching terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure in Grozny and Vladikavkaz cities. He said due to these alleged attacks, a “carpet plan” had been introduced in the Grozny airport area — where there had been dense fog at the time — in order to allow for the instant departure of all flights from the area in question.
Azerbaijan Airlines has not provided details of the physical and technical interference they have claimed, and the Baku government has avoided blaming Russia directly, which is most probably to avoid the ire of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
However, aviation experts as well as the pro-government media in Azerbaijan have stated that the aircraft may have been damaged by shrapnel coming from a Russian air defence’s explosion of a missile. Missile fragments have reportedly been found that had damaged the hydraulic system, which the flight’s controls are dependent on, as per veteran Azerbaijani pilot Tahir Agaguliev.
In addition, a flight attendant and crash survivor named Zulfuqar Asadov reported an external strike hitting the aircraft, which caused panic among the passengers. His arm was injured in another strike that followed immediately after.
Azerbaijan Airlines has announced the suspension of flights to seven Russian cities on social media, citing security purposes. Flights to Grozny and Makhachkala, Dagestan have already been halted and new additions are Sochi, Volgograd, Ufa, Samara and Mineralnye Vody.
Israel’s airline El Al has also suspended all flights to Moscow, due to what it terms “developments in Russian airspace.”
Ukrainian presidential spokesman Andriy Yermak said Russia must be held accountable for the incident. However, the Kremlin has resisted commenting on the possibility that the plane was hit by Russian air defence missiles.
Russia government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “An investigation into this aviation incident is underway and until the conclusions are made as a result of the investigation, we do not consider ourselves entitled to give any assessments.”
Vigils have been held in Azerbaijan in honour of the pilots, who saved many lives by successfully landing part of the plane, before perishing in the crash.
Kazakhstan authorities have been tending to the injured and are working with Azerbaijan on the ensuing investigation. Details have not yet been provided.
Reports from Baku indicate that both Russia and Kazakhstan have suggested that a committee from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) investigate the incident. Azerbaijan has expressed desire for an international inquiry rather than one that includes former Soviet countries.
