The docuяent is 53 pages long and presents the initial findings of the investigation into the aviation accident that occurred on December 25. The flight, involving an Embraer 190 aircraft, was en route from Baku to Grozny.
"The information provided in this report is preliminary. It may be updated with additional details as the investigation progresses and more materials are reviewed. Once the investigation is complete, a final report on the causes of the aviation incident will be issued," the document states.
The report indicates that the commission is continuing to conduct a detailed examination of the damage to the aircraft's structures.
"Initial inspections of the recovered parts revealed various types of damage, including on the fuselage's tail section, the wing, the stabilizer, and the altitude and direction control surfaces. Similar damage was found on the left engine, the left wing, and several other components and aggregates. Some of the damage had a rectangular shape," the report explains.
The commission also confirmed that the aircraft's hydraulic system was damaged, which could have been caused by an external object impact. The report includes the conversation between the pilots and air traffic controllers, as well as data from the airports and weather conditions at the time of the accident.
The Azerbaijan Airlines flight, traveling from Baku to Grozny, crashed during an emergency landing near Aktau on December 25. The incident resulted in 38 fatalities. According to Euronews and Reuters, the crash was allegedly caused by Russia’s air defense systems.
The official cause of the crash has not been released yet. However, shortly after the incident, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to apologize for the "tragedy in Russian airspace." Aliyev responded by stating that Russia must "take responsibility for the plane crash."
Following the AZAL crash, several foreign airlines canceled flights to Russia. In particular, Azerbaijan Airlines suspended flights to several Russian cities.
In mid-January, data from the black boxes of the AZAL aircraft, which crashed near Aktau, was sent to a special commission in Kazakhstan. The flight data, which was recovered in Brazil, is currently being analyzed by experts in Kazakhstan. Earlier, the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan announced that the preliminary findings of the investigation would be released within 30 days.
