Everything we know about AZAL plane crash: Timeline, damage, and investigation updates
The Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Kazakhstan has published a preliminary report on the investigation into the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190-100 IGW2 4K-AZ65 aircraft near the city of Aktau, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports.

The plane, operating flight J2-8243 from Baku to Grozny, crashed on December 25, 2024, while attempting an emergency landing at Aktau airfield, resulting in 38 fatalities.
According to the report, the aircraft made two unsuccessful landing attempts in Grozny before the crew decided to return to Baku. At 05:13:32 UTC, the main control systems were lost, leading the crew to divert to Aktau for an emergency landing.
The plane crashed at 06:27:58 UTC while approaching runway 11, impacting the ground with a bank to the right of 35 degrees and a pitch of -5.8 degrees. The configuration at the time of impact included extended flaps/slats in position three, extended landing gear with open doors, and stabilizer adjustments.
Data obtained from the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR) revealed key details leading to the crash:
● At 05:13:31, a sonic boom was recorded, followed by the disconnection of the autopilot and automatic throttle systems.
● By 05:13:34, pressure in the third hydraulic system dropped to 0 PSI, and the fluid level reached 0%, causing the control surfaces to lock in a neutral position.
● At 05:13:36, a failure in the aircraft's pitch trim system was recorded, and by 05:13:39, cabin depressurization began.
● At 05:13:47, the "HYD 2 LOW PRESS" alarm sounded, indicating a loss of pressure in the first hydraulic system.
● At 05:14:58, the pilot contacted the cabin crew via intercom, reporting that two seats had exploded and passengers were being reseated.
Last moments before the crash were also outlined:
● At 06:19:13, according to the (FDR), the audible alarm sounded.
● At 06:22:20 the crew began to release the mechanization in position one
● At 06:22:24 the crew began to release the chassis.
● At 06:22:40 the crew began to release the mechanization in position two
● At 06:23:30 the crew began to release the mechanization in position three
● At 06:24:52 according to the data (FDR) the sound alarm was triggered
● At 06:25:25 according to the data (FDR) the sound alarm was triggered
● At 06:27:58 the aircraft impacted the ground with a bank to the right of 35 degrees, pitch of "-5.8" degrees, in the configuration: Flaps/slats extended in position three; Landing gear extended, doors open; Stabilizer.
After the collision, the plane broke into several parts.
The report says that some of them were destroyed by fire: “From the point where the left landing gear touched down to the point where the fuselage touched down, the ground began to rise, then with a smooth transition to a lowland. Fire completely destroyed the central and front parts of the fuselage, the lower part of the cockpit, and the right wing. The upper part of the cockpit separated from the lower part, on which the upper instrument panel, the windshield of the cockpit, and the side window were preserved.”

The remaining parts of the AZAL aircraft were scattered across the crash site.
“The rear part of the fuselage with the tail section was located at a distance from the rest of the aircraft. The left wing with the central part of the aircraft was located at the site of the fuselage fire and was partially preserved. The landing gear—as a result of the collision—was destroyed and scattered at the scene; the upper part of the left landing gear remained in the niche of the left wing,” the report says.
The investigation revealed multiple damages to the aircraft's structure, including the tail section of the fuselage, vertical stabilizer, elevator, rudder, left engine, left wing, and other components. Some damages exhibited regular rectangular shapes, suggesting penetration by external objects. The report emphasized that these damages occurred before impact and likely caused the loss of hydraulic fluid and pressure, leading to the failure of control systems.
“Most of the penetration damage is in the vertical stabilizer and stabilizer. Visual inspection of the through damages shows that some of them are through, while others are blind/non-through damages. The Investigation Commission, in the presence of Authorized Representatives of the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Republic of Azerbaijan and law enforcement agencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan, carried out actions to extract foreign objects that could have been preserved in the blind damages, in order to send them for additional forensic examination. As a result, a large number of foreign objects were extracted from the blind damages,” the report states.
The plane crashed on December 25 carrying 67 people, including 5 crew members and 62 passengers. Among the victims were six Kazakh nationals. The two black boxes from the aircraft were delivered to Kazakhstan from Brazil on January 15.
The investigation is ongoing. The final report regarding the crash will be released by the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan at a later date.