An Azerbaijan Airlines crew diverted their Embraer E190 after a seemingly erratic flight, crashing short of the runway, with many fatalities.
This accident happened on Wednesday, the 25th of December. It involved Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243, a seasonal service that the airline currently performs twice weekly. It departs from Baku Heydar Aliyev International Airport (UBBB) in Azerbaijan, and its destination is Grozny Airport (URMG) in Russia.
According to Azerbaijan Airlines, there were 5 crew and 62 passengers on board the Embraer E190 on the day of this accident. The flight left Baku on time, using runway 34, heading northwest for Grozny.
The Azerbaijan Airlines E190 appears to have flown uneventfully for about half an hour after departing, reaching FL300 in cruise. At this point, with the aircraft just west of the Caspian Sea, flight tracking sites like FlightRadar24 reported losing reliable ADS-B information from the flight.
Azerbaijan E190 Disappears?
FR24 suggested that the aircraft may have been subject to GPS jamming and spoofing, with some signals suddenly placing it over 200 km (120 miles) west of its previous location. The aircraft’s signals then disappeared completely for approximately 87 minutes.
When the signals reappeared, the Azerbaijan Airlines E190 was over the Caspian Sea, over 200 km east-northeast of its previous reliable ADS-B position, and flying erratically. However, the accuracy of the altitude and speed information of the flight are still uncertain.
At this point, the flight had reportedly diverted to Aqtau International Airport (UATE) in Kazakhstan, possibly due to weather. The crew of the Azerbaijan Airlines E190 had declared an emergency, and soon appeared to attempt an approach on runway 11 in Aktau.
After making several turns at a seemingly low altitude (subject to GPS accuracy confirmation) near the airport, the Azerbaijan Airlines E190 crashed approximately 3 km (1.6 nm) from the runway.
The aircraft rolled inverted and broke up during the crash, bursting into flames. However, rescue crews have so far reported that 32 people have survived. The extent of their injuries is so far unclear. Azerbaijan Airlines has published a list with the names of the passengers and crew onboard the E190.
This aircraft is eleven years old, has registration 4K-AZ65 and has been with the airline since new. Its name is “Gusar W”. The airline has another seven Embraer E190s.
Sources: Aviation Herald, Reuters
This is a developing story. We will post updates below when new information becomes available.
Update
Video from the crash site and the aircraft’s interior show what appears to be shrapnel damage. Various news sources suggest that the damage is consistent with a missile strike. However, the nature of the damage or the timing of such an event still remains unclear.
Authorities in Kazakhstan reported that of the 32 survivors of the Azerbaijan Airlines E190 flight, 11 suffered serious injuries but remain stable. 18 others suffered lighter injuries, and four survivors didn’t require hospital care.
Investigators from both Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan are on site. Embraer has offered its condolences and is cooperating with investigators. Azerbaijan Airlines announced that it is temporarily stopping flights to Grozny.
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6 comments
Philipp Debus
In the video circulating online, it is clearly visible that the pilots were experiencing flight control issues and the wreckage shows shrapnel damage. I firmly disbelieve it was a bird strike, as Russian media reports.
Tomas Devosa
You are correct.
There are clear videos from INSINDE of the plane which show cabin was pierced thru with shrapnels.
This plane was shot down by russians.
ryhans
What’s the basis for your assertion that this plane was shot down by “russians?”
The investigation has barely begun, much less the culprits being identified.
Perhaps it was hit by a missile, but even if so we as yet have no idea whether it was deliberate and if so, who was responsible.
Sounds like you have your own axe to grind against russians but there is no evidence to yet to backup your theory. And it sounds highly improbable given the flight was headed to Grozny which is in Russia.
Eugene Zaytsev
And flew 500 kilometers from Grozny to Aqtau after a hit from something like a Buk AA? Sorry, but we’ve seen how a downed plane looks and falls in the MH17 disaster.
Alexey Afanasyev
It might be Panzer-C1 missile. It might almost miss for some reason (for example the plane was on the edge of work distance)…
Liam Holloway
Thing with MH17 , it got hit in the front and broke apart midair , this one if it was a missile. Was hit towards the tail causing control issues. Aircraft have been hit before by missiles and carried on flying. Investigation will reveal all.