Victims of AZAL plane crash commemorated at Baku airport

At Heydar Aliyev International Airport, the memory of those who died in the December 25 crash of Azerbaijan Airlineschr("39") (AZAL) J2-8243 Baku-Grozny flight was honored with a minute of silence.

The commemoration ceremony was attended by Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rashad Nabiyev, CEO of AZCON Holding Shahin Babayev, President of Azerbaijan Airlines Samir Rzayev, as well as representatives of state institutions, who together with the families of the crew members visited the Second Alley of Honor in Baku. Participants laid flowers on the graves.

Earlier, on December 20, within the framework of commemorative events, AZALchr("39")s management together with the relatives of the deceased crew members visited the crash site near the city of Aktau in the Republic of Kazakhstan. This visit marked another step toward honoring and preserving the memory of the victims of the tragedy.

The Embraer 190 aircraft crashed about 3 km from Aktau city. Preliminary investigations indicated that the plane came under attack from Russiachr("39")s Pantsir-S air defense system while approaching Grozny.

At the time of the crash, there were 67 people on board (62 passengers and 5 crew members). Of them, 42 were Azerbaijani citizens (37 passengers and 5 crew), 16 were Russian, 6 were Kazakh, and 3 were Kyrgyz. The accident claimed 38 lives and left 29 injured. Captain Igor Kshnyakin, first pilot Aleksandr Kalyaninov, and flight attendant Hokuma Aliyeva were among those killed, while flight attendants Zulfiqar Asadov and Aydan Rahimli survived.

For demonstrating high professionalism, bravery, and dedication in fulfilling their duties, the deceased crew members - Igor Ivanovich Kshnyakin, Alexander Georgievich Kalyaninov, and Hokuma Jalil gizi Aliyeva - were posthumously awarded the title of National Hero of Azerbaijan. The surviving crew members - Zulfiqar Sardar oglu Asadov and Aydan Vagif gizi Rahimli - were awarded the Order of "Rashadat" (Courage) of the 1st Degree.