BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 25. The commission's task is to fully investigate the matter, examine the causes of the crash and all its details, and provide information both to me and to the Azerbaijani public, said President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev during a meeting at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport in connection with the airplane crash, Trend reports.
"This morning, I was flying from Baku to St. Petersburg to attend the CIS Summit when I was informed of this tragic incident during the flight. I immediately gave instructions for the plane to return to Baku. While still in the air, I issued the necessary directives, spoke with the Prime Minister, and initiated the formation of a commission under his leadership.
In addition, a team of Azerbaijani representatives was dispatched to Aktau, where the crash had occurred. Further instructions were given to send medical teams from Azerbaijan to Aktau as quickly as possible.
The commission's task is to fully investigate the matter, examine the causes of the crash and all its details, and provide information both to me and to the Azerbaijani public. According to the information provided to me, the AZAL airline plane, flying on the Baku-Grozny route, changed its course due to worsening weather conditions and began heading toward Aktau airport, where the crash occurred during landing. There are videos of the plane crash available in the media and on social networks, and everyone can watch them. However, the reasons for the crash are not yet known to us. There are various theories, but I believe it is premature to discuss them. The matter must be thoroughly investigated. A criminal case has been launched by the Prosecutor General's Office, and naturally, the Azerbaijani public will be regularly informed about both the results of the commission's work and the progress of the criminal case," President Ilham Aliyev said.