Plane that crashed in Kazakhstan may have been hit by missiles

A in Aktau, Kazakhstan, this Wednesday (Dec 25, 2024) it may have been caused by a missile, according to international press reports. Initially, Russia’s aviation regulatory body, (acronym for Federal Air Transport Agency, in Portuguese), attributed the accident to the fact that the pilot decided to make an emergency landing near Aktau.

According to the agency, official sources linked to the disaster investigation said that some of the passengers who survived the accident with the Azerbaijan Airlines E190 would have heard an explosion as they approached Grozny, in the Russian region of Chechnya.

Furthermore, the Euronews also pointed out news from the international channel ANewsZbased in Azerbaijan, which claims to have confirmed with a Russian military source that “Damage to the plane suggests it may have been accidentally hit by an air defense missile system (SAM)”.

Grozny is the capital of the Republic of Chechnya, a region of Russia. Although not directly involved in the conflict, the city is the point of origin of troops known as “Kadyrovtsy”, linked to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, for this reason, it is possible that the city’s airspace has a defense missile system.

So far, Russia has not officially commented on the accident.

Ramzan Kadyrov, leader of Chechnya, expressed his condolences in a statement and stated that some of the survivors being treated at the hospital were in an extremely serious condition. The leader also said that he and others would pray for the speedy recovery of the victims.

THE ACCIDENT

The flight, operated by Azerbaijan Airlines, departed from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, and was destined for the city of Grozny, in Russia, with 67 people on board. The aircraft was manufactured by (Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica).

At least 38 people died. Authorities in Azerbaijan, where the flight departed, say there are at least 28 survivors.

Watch the moment of the fall (3min22s):