Video shows accident Passenger plane crashes in Kazakhstan - 29 survivors

A passenger plane crashed in Kazakhstan on a flight to Russia. The plane had previously made an emergency call.

A passenger plane from Azerbaijan has crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan. According to the airline, 67 people were on board. Azerbaijan Airlines said there were 62 passengers and 5 crew members, the state-run Azerbaijani news agency Azertag reported from Baku. Immediately after the accident, there were also reports of 105 people on board.

The Kazakh authorities reported in the course of the morning that more and more people were being rescued alive. The authorities have published a preliminary list of names of 29 survivors. Two children's names were found on this list from the Mangistau regional administration. An eleven-year-old girl stated that she lived in Germany. She did not know her nationality.

However, there were also casualties, including the pilots. According to the authorities, more than 30 people may have been killed. Four bodies have already been recovered.

Of the injured survivors taken to hospital, 14 were Azerbaijani nationals, 10 were Russian and two were from Kyrgyzstan.

As the plane crashed near Aktau airport on the Caspian Sea, numerous videos of the accident were circulated on social networks. A thick column of black smoke could be seen above the crash site.

Bird strike as a possible cause of the accident

The plane had taken off from Baku and was due to fly to the Chechen capital Grozny in Russia. However, the airport there was closed due to fog, so the plane was diverted to Makhachkala on the Caspian Sea.

According to initial information from Azerbaijan Airlines, the Embraer 190 aircraft was caught in a flock of birds, Azertag reported. It then attempted an emergency landing in Aktau. Modern jets are actually designed to survive collisions with birds. In severe cases, however, bird strikes can still put aircraft in danger.