MADRID 26 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Azerbaijan is observing a day of national mourning this Thursday for the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane on Wednesday near the city of Aktau, in Kazakhstan, in which at least 38 people have died.
Azeri President Ilham Aliyev has approved a decree declaring December 26 as a day of mourning, in line with article 109 of the Constitution and as a sign of the “pain shared with the families of those killed in the accident,” according to a statement from the Presidency.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations and Azerbaijan Airlines have stated that the bodies of the Azeri victims of the accident and the twelve survivors, among whom there are five in serious condition, will be repatriated to the country during the day this Thursday.
The aircraft covered the route that connects the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, with that of the Russian region of Chechnya, Grozny. Just after a couple of hours of flight, the plane requested an emergency landing. Due to thick fog in Grozny, it was diverted first to Makhachkala, in Russian Dagestan, and then to Aktau, where it finally crashed about three kilometers from the airport of this city, located on the shores of the Caspian Sea.
The reason for the accident is being investigated. Some reports suggest that the tragedy occurred as a result of a flock of birds hitting the aircraft, while other media claim that an oxygen cylinder exploded on board, causing the pilots to lose control of the aircraft.