Azerbaijan Airlines claims that “physical and technical interference” caused the plane to crash

Azerbaijan Airlines claimed that a “physical and technical interference” was responsible for the crash of one of its aircraft in Kazakhstan on 25 December. They said this based on the initial results of an investigation into the accident.

A total of 38 people died when the Embraer plane landed at high speed and burst into flames 3 kilometers from the runway at Aktau Airport.

The flight initially attempted a landing at Grozny airport in southern Russia, but people reported seeing an explosion before it diverted over the Caspian Sea to Kazakhstan.

The head of Russia’s civil aviation agency reported that the situation in the Chechen capital was “very complicated” and that a closed skies protocol was being followed.

According to Dmitri Yadrov, head of Rosaviatsia (Russia’s federal air transport agency), Ukrainian combat drones launched terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure in the cities of Groznyi and Vladikavkaz. He said that because of these alleged attacks, a “carpet plan” was introduced in the area of ​​Grozny airport – where there was dense fog at the time – to allow all flights from the affected area to depart immediately.

Azerbaijan Airlines did not provide details of the physical and technical interference they sustained, and the government in Baku avoided directly blaming Russia, most likely to avoid angering Russian President Vladimir Putin.

However, aviation experts as well as pro-government media in Azerbaijan said the aircraft may have been damaged by shrapnel from a Russian air defense missile explosion. Missile fragments were found that damaged the hydraulic system, on which the flight controls depend, according to veteran Azerbaijani pilot Tahir Agaguliev.

Additionally, a flight attendant and crash survivor named Zulfuqar Asadov reported that an external strike had hit the aircraft, causing panic among the passengers. His arm was injured in another blow that followed immediately after.

Azerbaijan Airlines announced the suspension of flights to seven Russian cities on social media, citing security reasons. Flights to Grozny and Makhachkala, Dagestan have already been stopped and new additions are Sochi, Volgograd, Ufa, Samara and Mineralnye Vody.

Israeli airline El Al has also suspended all flights to Moscow due to what it calls “developments in Russian airspace”.

Ukrainian presidential spokesman Andriy Yermak said Russia must be held accountable for the incident. However, the Kremlin has resisted commenting on the possibility that the plane was hit by Russian air defense missiles.

Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “An investigation into this aviation incident is ongoing, and until the conclusions of the investigation are reached, we do not consider ourselves entitled to make any assessment.”

Vigils were held in Azerbaijan to honor the pilots, who saved many lives by successfully landing part of the plane before dying in the accident.

KAZAKHSTAN authorities treated the injured and are working with Azerbaijan on the ensuing investigation. Details have not yet been provided.

Reports from Baku indicate that both Russia and Kazakhstan have suggested that a committee from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) investigate the incident. Azerbaijan has expressed its desire for an international investigation rather than one that includes former Soviet countries.