ASTANA — Azerbaijan observed a national day of mourning on Thursday after a passenger jet from its flag carrier crashed in western Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, killing 38 of the 67 people onboard.
The Embraer 190 aircraft was supposed to fly northwest from the Azerbaijani capital Baku to the city of Grozny in Chechnya in southern Russia, but instead diverted far off course across the Caspian Sea. It crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday.
DIFFICULT DUTY Emergency personnel work at the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet near the city of Aktau, western Kazakhstan, on Dec. 25, 2024. PHOTO FROM KAZAKHSTAN’S EMERGENCY SITUATIONS MINISTRY VIA AFP