Tengrinews.kz - Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev announced plans to issue a decree awarding the crew members of the Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane that crashed near Aktau, according to Minval.az.
He emphasized the heroism displayed by the pilots and crew.
"I very highly value their efforts, professionalism, and selflessness. The pilots and the entire crew demonstrated true heroism. The pilots showed professionalism and courage in controlling the aircraft, which was in an uncontrollable state in various ways.
Of course, the pilots were experienced and knew they wouldn’t survive the emergency landing. But to save the passengers, they showed the utmost heroism, and thanks to this, there are survivors from the crash.
It is precisely because of their actions that part of the fuselage didn’t catch fire, and it is because of this that today we can definitively say the plane was brought down by Russia. This is a fact, and no one can deny it. We’re not saying it was intentional, but it happened," Aliyev said in an interview with Azerbaijani television at Heydar Aliyev International Airport on December 29.
The Embraer 190 aircraft operated by Azerbaijan Airlines, flying from Baku to Grozny, crashed on December 25 near Aktau. On board were 67 people, including five crew members and 62 passengers. The crash resulted in 38 fatalities, while 29 people survived.
Azerbaijan’s Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rashad Nabiyev stated that "external interference" could have caused the crash.
On December 28, Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev, acknowledging that the tragic incident took place in Russian airspace.
Earlier, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev awarded a group of Kazakh citizens for their efforts in mitigating the consequences of the plane crash in Aktau.
