Investigation ongoing into AZAL plane crash, says Azerbaijan's chief prosecutor

The investigation into the criminal case related to the AZAL airline plane crash is ongoing, said Azerbaijani Prosecutor General Kamran Aliyev.

He noted that Russia, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan are cooperating in the investigation and expressed hope that the case would reach a logical conclusion, Caliber.Az reports.

To recall, on December 25, 2024, Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, an Embraer 190AR, tragically crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, during an emergency landing attempt. The flight, traveling from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny, Russia, carried 67 people: 62 passengers and five crew members. Among the passengers were 42 Azerbaijanis, 16 Russians, six Kazakhs, and three Kyrgyz nationals. The crash claimed 38 lives, including three crew members, while 29 people, including the remaining two crew, survived.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the aircraft was struck by a Russian surface-to-air missile "Pantsir-S1" during efforts to repel a Ukrainian drone attack over Chechnya.

On December 28, Russia's President Vladimir Putin made a phone call to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Putin expressed condolences and apologised to Ilham Aliyev for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace. The Azerbaijani president demanded Putin bring those responsible to justice and provide compensation to Azerbaijan, as well as to the injured passengers and the families of the deceased passengers and crew members.

While Russia initially sought to obscure the true cause of the tragedy with conflicting reports, further investigation has since brought clarity to the situation.

On January 24, Caliber.Az's findings confirmed that both the individual who fired on the plane and the officer who issued the order have been identified. Additionally, the initial report of the plane being struck by the Russian Pantsir-S1 has been verified. The investigation also revealed that before the plane was struck, it was affected by electronic warfare (EW), which compromised the aircraft’s navigation systems and significantly hindered the crew’s ability to control the plane.

By Khagan Isayev