Investigation Of The Cause Of The Azerbaijan Airlines Aircraft Accident Led By The Kazakhstan Law Enforcement Agency

Photo illustration. (Doc. Pexels)

The cause of the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane (AZAL) near Aktau airport will be carried out by the Kazakh law enforcement agency based on articles of violation of traffic safety rules. This was revealed by the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Bozumbayev Kanat, on Wednesday, December 25.

Azerbaijan's 190 Embraer, Azerbaijan Airlines, which flew from Baku to Grozny, Russia, crashed in Aktau, Kazakhstan, with 69 people on board the flight. According to preliminary data from AZAL, the plane crashed after colliding with a flock of birds. Bozumbayev stated that a total of 38 people died in the incident.

"The investigation into the cause of this air accident will be led by the Kazakh law enforcement agency," Bozumbayev said at a press conference, quoted from ANTARA, Wednesday, December 26. The investigation was carried out based on Article 344 Paragraph 3 'violence of traffic safety rules or operations of rail, air, sea, or river transportation that caused the death of two people or more due to negligence,' Bozumbayev said further.

He added that forensic and civil aviation experts would work through plane debris checks to establish the chronology of events.

Meanwhile, Embraer's company expressed its condolences to the families of the accident victims in Aktau and expressed readiness to support the relevant authorities.

According to Azerbaijan Airlines, the plane captain who crashed, Igor Kshnyakin, had more than 15,000 flight hours of experience.

The Embraer 190 aircraft was produced in 2013 and underwent a thorough technical inspection in October, AZAL added.