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December 2024, in particular, will be remembered as a dark month for civil aviation, with the last week being the deadliest. This period accounted for 59% of all casualties for the year.
On Christmas Day, an Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190, flying from Baku to Grozny in Russia, was forced to make an emergency landing in Aktau, Kazakhstan. The plane exploded in flames, killing 38 of the 67 people on board, while the rest sustained injuries. The flight was supposed to last only about an hour, but the plane spent over two hours circling the sky, trying to land safely.
Passengers were seen in videos chanting prayers during the terrifying moments. Survivors recounted hearing loud noises from the plane as it circled before crashing. The President of Azerbaijan later stated that the plane was shot down by Russia, possibly by mistake, as tensions between Russia and Ukraine were high at the time.
ALSO READ: Watch | Final moments before and after Azerbaijan Airlines flight crash in Kazakhstan
The biggest accident of the year occurred when a Jeju Air Boeing 737 from South Korea exploded at Muan Airport after making an emergency landing without its landing gear. The plane ran off the runway and collided with a wall before exploding. Investigators believe a bird strike caused the landing gear to fail. All 175 passengers and four of the six crew members were killed. Only two flight attendants survived and were found in the wreckage.
While 2024 was one of the deadliest years for aviation, it could have been worse. The year began with the destruction of a Japan Airlines Airbus A350, which collided with a Coast Guard Dash 8 turboprop plane. The A350 caught fire but continued to taxi. Five of the six crew members on the Coast Guard plane died, but everyone on the A350 survived.
On 28 December, a KLM Boeing 737 veered off the runway while attempting an emergency landing. The Amsterdam-bound plane had departed from Oslo but aborted its journey after the flight crew reported hydraulic problems. Fortunately, none of the 176 passengers or six crew members were injured.
In comparison, the 2023 Global Accident Report by the Aviation Safety Network recorded 120 fatalities for the entire year, fewer than the lives lost in the Azerbaijan Airlines crash alone in 2024. The deadliest crash of 2023 occurred in Nepal, where 72 people died in January.
For those who lost loved ones in these accidents, 2024 will remain a year of pain and sorrow.
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(Edited by : Anand Singha)
