Kazakhstan's transport minister confirms Aktau airport was ready for AZAL plane emergency landing

Kazakhstan's Minister of Transport, Marat Karabayev, confirmed that the emergency services at Aktau Airport were fully prepared to receive an AZAL aircraft, as reported by Kazinform.

According to Karabayev, after entering Kazakhstan's airspace, the crew established communication with the Aktau Airport dispatcher, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

"The dispatcher promptly took all necessary actions to ensure a safe landing, including activating the runway lights to aid visual contact," he said.

"The crew attempted to land twice, but during the approach, there were erratic altitude changes observed. As a result, the aircraft veered toward the coastline."

The minister explained that contact with the crew was lost at 11:28 AM, and shortly thereafter, the plane crashed. "The first responders, the airport's rescue service, arrived at the scene immediately and began evacuating passengers," he added.

An investigation is currently underway, with a special commission comprising experts from the Department for the Investigation of Incidents and Accidents in Transport, part of the Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The tragic crash occurred on December 25 when an Embraer 190 aircraft, operating flight J2-8243 from Baku to Grozny, crashed while attempting an emergency landing near Aktau. The flight had 67 people on board, including 62 passengers and five crew members. Passengers included 37 Azerbaijanis, 16 Russians, 6 Kazakhs, and 3 Kyrgyzstani nationals.

The crash claimed the lives of 38 people, while 29 survived.

By Aghakazim Guliyev