Finance
Passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashes in Kazakhstan with many feared dead
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 25, 2024
2 min readLast updated: January 27, 2026
Home > Finance > Passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashes in Kazakhstan with many feared dead
Quick Summary
An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed in Kazakhstan with 62 passengers and five crew on board. 27 survived. Investigations are ongoing.
Azerbaijan Airlines Plane Crashes in Kazakhstan, Casualties Feared
By Mariya Gordeyeva
ASTANA (Reuters) - An Embraer passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday with 62 passengers and five crew on board, Kazakh authorities announced, saying that 27 people had survived.
Unverified video of the crash showed the plane, which was operated by Azerbaijan Airlines, bursting into flames as it hit the ground and thick black smoke then rising. Bloodied and bruised passengers could be seen stumbling from a piece of the fuselage that had remained intact.
The Central Asian country's emergencies ministry said in a statement that fire services had put out the blaze and that the survivors, including three children, were being treated at a nearby hospital.
Azerbaijan Airlines said the Embraer 190 aircraft, with flight number J2-8243, had been flying from Baku to Grozny, the capital of Russia's Chechnya, but had been forced to make an emergency landing approximately 3 km (1.8 miles) from the Kazakh city of Aktau.
Russian news agencies said the plane had been rerouted due to fog in Grozny.
Authorities in Kazakhstan said they had begun looking into different possible versions of what had happened, including a technical problem, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.
Russia's aviation watchdog said in a statement that preliminary information suggested the pilot had decided to make an emergency landing after a bird strike.
Following the crash, Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, was returning home from Russia where he had been due to attend a summit on Wednesday, Russia's RIA news agency reported.
Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-backed leader of Chechnya, expressed his condolences in a statement and said those being treated in hospital were in an extremely serious condition and that he and others would pray for their rapid recovery.
(Reporting by Mariya Gordeyeva and Tamara Vaal in Astana, Nailia Bagirova and Moscow buro; Writing by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
Key Takeaways
- •An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan.
- •62 passengers and five crew were on board; 27 survived.
- •The crash was possibly due to a bird strike.
- •The plane was en route from Baku to Grozny.
- •Kazakhstan authorities are investigating the crash.
Frequently Asked Questions about Passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashes in Kazakhstan with many feared dead
1What is the main topic?
The article covers the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane in Kazakhstan, resulting in multiple casualties.
2What caused the crash?
Preliminary reports suggest a bird strike led to an emergency landing attempt.
3How many people survived the crash?
27 people survived the crash, including three children.
