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Chilling footage showing the moment the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed on Christmas Day has been shared online.
It's understood that 38 people have died after Azerbaijan Airlines flight 8243 crashed near the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan on Christmas Day.
The flight had originally departed from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku and was headed for Grozny in Chechnya, Russia but was ultimately rerouted due to fog. Footage later saw the plane attempting an emergency landing in the western city of Aktau, but ultimately burst into flames just moments are touching down on the runway.
Warning: Video contains upsetting content
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29 people survived the crash, with Sky News reporting that 37 of the passengers onboard were Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian, six Kazakhstani and three Kyrgyzstani.
According to Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev, 11 people were in critical condition after being pulled from the wreckage, while one survivor remained unidentified as of 26 December.
"The bodies are in poor condition, mostly burnt, all collected," he added, via CNN. "Now they will be in the morgue, and identification will take place."
An investigation into the cause of the crash is currently ongoing, with the carrier stating that 'external physical and technical interference' was the reason.
While an official cause is yet to be determined, a report published by Reuters suggests that Russian air defence systems may be at fault for downing the plane.
This theory is also said to be backed up by US military sources.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has also instructed his government to set up a commission to look into the crash.
"The commission's task is to fully investigate the matter, examine the causes of the crash and all its details, and provide information both to me and to the Azerbaijani public," he said in an official briefing on Wednesday, adding that a criminal case has been 'launched'.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has since spoken to the Azerbaijani leader, apologising for the 'tragic incident' without saying that Russia was responsible.
"(President) Vladimir Putin apologised for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace and once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured," an official statement from the Kremlin released today (28 December) read, via BBC.
Azerbaijan Airlines has since suspended flights to five Russian airports, citing concerns about 'potential risks to flight safety' per a report from The Guardian.
Topics: World News, Russia, Travel
Brenna Cooper