Kazakhstan releases initial findings on AZAL plane crash - PHOTOS
The Government Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan, assigned to investigate the causes of the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane crash, has published a preliminary report regarding the tragedy near Aktau, News.Az reports citing Caliber.az
The crash of an Embraer 190 aircraft resulted in 38 deaths out of 67 people on board, including both pilots and one flight attendant.
Some 29 people, including two flight attendants, were rescued. The commission, consisting of representatives from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Russia, and Brazil, conducted a thorough analysis of the flight data recorders and other technical data. This allowed them to reconstruct the sequence of events leading up to the disaster.
Experts identified numerous damages of varying sizes and shapes in the tail section of the fuselage, the vertical stabilizer, the horizontal stabilizer, as well as on the elevators and rudders.
Similar damages were found on the left engine, left wing, hydraulic system, as well as on various units and components of the aircraft. In certain areas, the damages have a distinct rectangular shape.
Some of the discovered metal objects were retrieved from the hydraulic system compartment #3 and the stabilizer control mechanism. The report also includes examples of other metal objects that were extracted.
One of the most crucial points in the report is that the issues on board began at 05:13 (GMT+3) while the "Cover Plan" was mentioned at 05:21, as seen in the screenshots above.
This means the "Cover Plan" was declared 8 minutes after the tragedy began. Russian media have already started reporting that the "Cover Plan" was announced. Indeed, but only after the Azerbaijani aircraft was struck.
On December 25, 2024, Azerbaijan Airlines flight 8243, an Embraer 190AR, tragically crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, while attempting an emergency landing. The flight was traveling from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny, Russia, and had 67 people on board, including 62 passengers and five crew members. Among the passengers were 42 Azerbaijanis, 16 Russians, six Kazakhs, and three Kyrgyz nationals. The crash resulted in 38 fatalities, while 29 survivors, including three crew members, were rescued. Of the five crew members, three died, and two survived. Initial investigations point to a Russian surface-to-air missile striking the aircraft while attempting to intercept a Ukrainian drone over Chechnya.
On December 28, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to offer condolences and apologize for the tragedy, which occurred in Russian airspace. President Aliyev demanded that those responsible be held accountable and that compensation be provided to Azerbaijan, the injured passengers, and the families of those who perished.
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