An Azerbaijani airliner, carrying 67 individuals, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on Wednesday, resulting in at least 38 fatalities, according to local authorities. In a large-scale rescue operation, 29 survivors, including two children, were pulled from the wreckage, with 11 in critical condition, stated Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister, Kanat Bozumbayev.
Flight J2-8243, operated by Azerbaijan Airlines, was en route from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny in Russia’s Chechnya region when it was forced to make an emergency landing about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from Aktau. The crash resulted in a fire, and footage from the scene showed survivors emerging from the burned wreckage. All survivors were taken to nearby hospitals, but none were Kazakh nationals.
“The bodies of the deceased are severely burned and have been collected for identification,” Bozumbayev noted. One survivor remains unidentified, unconscious, and hospitalized, without any documentation.
A search team located the aircraft’s black box, and the Kazakh government has launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, collaborating with Azerbaijani authorities. Emergency responders extinguished the fire upon arriving at the scene.
Videos from the crash showed the plane spiraling before hitting the ground and bursting into flames. Survivors, including men, women, teenagers, and a young child, were seen emerging, bloodied and in distress. One woman who participated in the rescue effort described the chaotic and heartbreaking scene.
“There was fire at the front of the plane, and we rescued people whose bodies were covered in blood,” said Elmira, a witness. “A little girl begged us to save her mother, who was still trapped.”
Survivors were taken to a bus to protect them from the cold, as they had no jackets. Authorities have not immediately disclosed the exact cause of the crash, though preliminary reports from Russia’s aviation watchdog suggest a bird strike may have forced the emergency landing. There are also questions regarding the plane’s deviation from its intended route, especially following drone activity in southern Russia, which had previously led to airport closures.
According to the transport ministry, of the 62 passengers aboard, 37 were from Azerbaijan, 6 from Kazakhstan, 3 from Kyrgyzstan, and 16 from Russia. An investigation has been initiated by Kazakhstan’s Transport Police, focusing on safety violations that may have contributed to the tragedy.
Azerbaijan Airlines has suspended flights to Grozny and Makhachkala until the investigation is concluded. Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his condolences and pledged support, with a plane carrying medical personnel and equipment being dispatched to Kazakhstan.