BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 26. A delegation from the State Civil Aviation Agency under the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) has arrived in Kazakhstan following the recent crash of an Embraer 190 aircraft near Aktau, Trend reports via the Kazakh Ministry of Transport.
"According to the Rules for the Submission of Data and Investigation of Aviation Accidents and Incidents in Civil and Experimental Aviation, the Ministry of Transport has established a Commission to investigate the aviation accident.
Employees of the Department for the Investigation of Transport Accidents and Incidents are on-site conducting the field phase of the investigation. The delegation from Azerbaijan’s State Civil Aviation Agency and AZAL representatives have arrived," the ministry stated.
The investigation is being carried out in close collaboration with Azerbaijani aviation authorities.
"Representatives from the aircraft manufacturer, Embraer, and CENIPA [Brazil’s Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center] have also flown to Kazakhstan. The Government Commission, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev, includes the Minister of Transport Marat Karabaev, Vice Minister of Transport Talgat Lastaev, Director of the Department for the Investigation of Transport Accidents and Incidents Nurzhan Malayev, Chair of the Civil Aviation Committee Saltanat Tompieva, and General Director of RGP 'KazAeroNavigation' Nurzhan Akhmetov," the ministry added.
To note, the Embraer 190, operated by AZAL and flying from Baku to Grozny, crashed three kilometers from Aktau airport yesterday.
The aircraft had 67 people on board, including 62 passengers and 5 crew members. Among the passengers, 37 were Azerbaijani nationals, with 23 confirmed dead and 14 survivors. The 16 Russian passengers included 7 fatalities and 9 survivors, while all 6 Kazakh passengers died.
Both pilots were killed in the crash, and 3 of the 5 crew members survived.
Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel