Tengrinews.kz - Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer, the manufacturer of the plane that crashed near Aktau on December 25, has issued a statement following the incident.
The text of the statement was published on Embraer's official website.
According to the company, they are "deeply saddened" by the tragedy involving the Embraer 190 aircraft.
"We are deeply saddened by the occurrence with an Embraer 190 today near Aktau, Kazakhstan. Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences go out to the families, friends, colleagues, and loved ones affected by this incident. We are closely monitoring the situation and we remain fully committed to supporting the relevant authorities," the statement reads.
Earlier, the Azerbaijan Airlines plane, flying from Baku (Azerbaijan) to Grozny (Russia), crashed three kilometers from Aktau at 11:30 AM local time on December 25. The passenger flight was unable to land in Grozny due to heavy fog, first it was redirected to Makhachkala, and then to Aktau.
There are several versions of the cause of the crash. According to one version, the crash was caused by a collision of the plane with a flock of birds. Other media outlets report that an oxygen tank exploded on board. The Embraer lost control and crashed when it was less than 3 minutes away from Aktau Airport.
According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations, there were 69 people on board, including 5 crew members:
42 citizens of Azerbaijan;
16 citizens of Russia;
6 citizens of Kazakhstan;
3 citizens of Kyrgyzstan;
two unidentified women of unknown citizenship, one about 32 years old, the other about 40 years old.
Azerbaijan Airlines also published a full list of passengers.
According to the latest data, there are 29 survivors, citizens of Azerbaijan, Russia and Kyrgyzstan.
What is known about the Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed near Aktau
The aircraft that crashed near Aktau was an Embraer ERJ-190, a twin-engine jet widely used for short and medium-haul flights. The aircraft are manufactured by a Brazilian company. The ERJ-190 (E190) is designed to carry between 96 and 114 passengers, depending on the cabin configuration. These aircraft can fly up to 4500 kilometers.
According to Flightaware, the aircraft took off from the airport 11 minutes ahead of schedule. While cruising over the Caspian Sea, the aircraft issued an emergency squawk 7700.
