Politico: NATO seeks probe into Azerbaijani plane crash, as suspicions grow Russia downed it

[Dennis Donovan]

Politico - NATO seeks probe into Azerbaijani plane crash, as suspicions grow Russia downed it

The Kremlin warns against premature conclusions despite reports that its air defenses misidentified the airliner as a Ukrainian drone.

December 26, 2024 6:34 pm CET
By Ketrin Jochecová

NATO has called for an investigation into the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane that killed 38 people Wednesday morning amid growing suspicions that Russian air defenses were responsible for the disaster.

The Embraer E190 airliner was en route from the Azerbaijani capital Baku to Grozny in Russia's Chechen republic, ruled by Ramzan Kadyrov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Passengers reported hearing a blast, after which the plane was diverted hundreds of kilometers from its route and crashed near the Kazakh city of Aktau. There were 29 survivors.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and victims of Azerbaijan Airlines flight J28243," NATO spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah said in a post on X Thursday. "We wish those injured in the crash a speedy recovery and call for a full investigation."

The Kremlin has cautioned against drawing any premature conclusions, with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov saying Thursday: “We need to wait for the investigation to conclude.”

/snip

[EX500rider]

3. Yeah all previous attempts to land passenger planes with no tail control have ended poorly

See:
JAL Flight 123-The crash is the deadliest single-aircraft accident in aviation history.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Air_Lines_Flight_123

and

United Airlines Flight 232
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Airlines_Flight_232

On that flight the crew did get it down, 296 passengers and crew on board, 112 died during the accident, while 184 people survived.

Same famous quotes from the ATC recording:


Air traffic control (ATC) was contacted and an emergency landing at nearby Sioux Gateway Airport was organized. Haynes kept his sense of humor during the emergency, as recorded by the airplane's cockpit voice recorder (CVR):

Fitch: "I'll tell you what, we'll have a beer when this is all done."
Haynes: "Well I don't drink, but I'll sure as shit have one."

and later:

Sioux City Approach: "United Two Thirty-Two Heavy, the wind's currently three six zero at one one; three sixty at eleven. You're cleared to land on any runway."
Haynes: "[laughter] Roger. [laughter] You want to be particular and make it a runway, huh?"

A more serious remark often quoted from Haynes was made when ATC asked the crew to make a left turn to keep them clear of the city:
Haynes: "Whatever you do, keep us away from the city."

[Walleye]

2. The Russians are probably snickering that they got away with blaming it on a bird