LONDON — An Azerbaijan Airlines passenger aircraft crashed near Kazakhstan’s Aktau Airport close to the Caspian Sea on Wednesday morning, Kazakh authorities said, with up to 40 people feared dead.
The aircraft was flying from Baku in Azerbaijan to Grozny in Russia, according to the Transport Ministry’s post on its official Telegram channel. It was redirected to Aktau in Kazakhstan due to fog in Grozny, as reported by Russian news agencies.
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed to ABC News that there were a total of 69 people on board, comprising 64 passengers and five crew members. The ministry informed that 29 individuals survived the crash and were taken to hospitals for treatment.
Two children were among those hospitalized, the ministry said in a post to its Telegram channel.
Kazakhstan’s deputy health minister told ABC News that some of those taken to hospital are in critical condition.
The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground near the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024.
AP Photo/Azamat Sarsenbayev
Kazakh authorities have initiated an investigation into the crash, focusing on reported bird strike, mechanical failure and the decision to reroute the flight due to adverse weather conditions, Kazakh aviation authorities told ABC News.
Among the passengers were 37 Azerbaijani citizens, six from Kazakhstan, three from Kyrgyzstan and 16 from Russia, the Transport Ministry said in a statement, citing “preliminary data.”
Azerbaijan Airlines said in a post to X that the aircraft “made an emergency landing” around 2 miles from Aktau. The aircraft was an Embraer 190 model with flight number J2-8243, it said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Tomek Rolski and Dragana Jovanovic contributed to this report.
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