Even after the release of the preliminary report of the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan on the crash of the "Azerbaijan Airlines" plane on December 25 last year, the Russian side does not stop its prejudiced approach to the incident, APA reports.
The preliminary report shows that the Embraer 190-100 IGW passenger plane belonging to Azerbaijan Airlines CJSC and registered in the state register with the number 4K-AZ65, which was operating a regular flight from Baku to Grozny on flight J2-8243, lost GPS signals in the airspace of the Russian Federation, also experiencing the same failure above Grozny Airport.
The report says that due to adverse weather conditions the aircraft unsuccessfully attempted to land in Grozny two times, and then the captain decided to return to Baku. Following this decision, the (CVR) recorded two external noises, occurring with 24 seconds interval, over Grozny.
Analysis of the CVR and FDR data showed that, 4 seconds after the first external noise the 3rd hydraulic system failed, followed by the failure of the 1st hydraulic system 6 seconds later, and the 2nd hydraulic system 21 seconds later.
Numerous through and blind damages were found on the fuselage, photos and video recordings were taken. The number of such damages were particularly high in the AFT part of the aircraft, including the vertical and horizontal stabilizers. Moreover, some of them were found in the left wing, and the left engine.
It was recorded that the damages in the fuselage were caused by foreign objects. No evidence of a bird strike was noted in the preliminary report.
Foreign objects that did not belong to the aircraft structure were discovered in the wreckage damages, and photos of these objects were made available to the public in the preliminary report.
Additional expert examinations will be carried out to determine the exact origin of these objects.
At 05:13:32 the aircraft lost primary flight controls, at 05:21:42 the coordinating air traffic controller conveyed to Grozny ATC the information on “Kovyor” special operation.
No information relating to an explosion of the oxygencylinders is included in the report.
Photographs, audio transcripts, and digital recordings confirming facts listed above are provided in the preliminary report text.
Our purpose in providing these excerpts from the report is to remind the Russian side of its responsibility once again. Thus, after the report was released yesterday, relevant Russian agencies, especially “Rosaviasia”, made groundless statements to evade responsibility. The Russian press is not far behind in this matter.
It is obvious that the Russian side wants to cover up the issue and shift the responsibility onto the flight crew. This can be clearly seen from the statements of official agencies, individuals, as well as from materials circulating on the Russian media.
The Russian side intends to create a “Malaysia Boeing-2” situation. Remind that in July 2014, a Boeing-777 belonging to Malaysia Airlines, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down in southeastern Ukraine, killing 298 people on board. Although it was confirmed that the plane was shot down in the airspace of Donbass, occupied by Russia, with weapons belonging to Russia, Moscow still does not take responsibility, groundlessly blaming Ukraine.
The actions of Russian officials, experts and the press regarding the AZAL plane give reason to say that they chose the same tactics. However, the results of the investigation, the sequence of the accident, facts and evidence say otherwise.
As can be seen from the report, the Azerbaijani plane was fired upon over Grozny, several shots were fired in succession, the main control systems of the aircraft failed at 05:13:32, and the coordinating dispatcher informed Grozny about the “Kovyor” operation 8 minutes later - at 05:21:42. From this it is clear that the Azerbaijani side and the crew of the aircraft could not have known about the “Kovyor” operation.
It also indicates that the Russian side wanted to hide the issue. The initial report released by Kazakhstan clearly stated that the fact of numerous penetrating and blind damages to the fuselage of the aircraft was discovered and was recorded in photos and videos. These damages were found in the rear part of the fuselage of the aircraft, especially in the vertical and horizontal stabilizers, as well as in large numbers on the left wing and left engine.
The damage found on the fuselage of the aircraft was caused by the impact of foreign objects. The report does not provide information about any facts indicating that the aircraft collided with birds.
It is impossible to understand why the Russian side does not want to back down after such a clear report, written with facts and evidence.
Speaking about the impact of foreign objects, it is worth emphasizing that an investigation into the incident is currently underway in a military unit located in the Khankala settlement of Grozny, the capital of Chechnya. There is information that the fire on the Azerbaijani aircraft was opened precisely from the territory of this military unit.
The identity of those who gave the order to fire and those who opened fire is known to the Azerbaijani side. Russian investigators want to determine the reasons for the opening of fire, and they are trying to get an answer to this question during interrogation.
The Azerbaijani side also knows from which weapon the plane was fired. A source in the Azerbaijani government told Reuters on February 4 that the plane was shot down by the Russian Pantsir-S air defense system.
"The Azerbaijani side has a fragment of the Pantsir-S missile that was removed from the plane and identified as a result of international expertise," the source said.
With so many facts, evidence and proof, Russia's intention to divert the issue and attempts to shift the blame to the crew is deeply regrettable. However, in addition to Kazakhstan, experts from Azerbaijan, Russia and the producing country, Brazil, are also participating in the investigation. In other words, the points reflected in the initial report are also known to the Russian side.
Azerbaijan's conditions and what it wants are clear, and they have been announced at the highest level. As already noted, Azerbaijan also has parts of the Pantsir-S missiles that shot down the plane. An evidence base is being formed, facts and evidence are being collected, and preparations are underway to appeal to an international court.
However, the door is open for dialogue with Russia. Moscow must openly admit its guilt and take responsibility. Otherwise, Baku is ready for further steps.
Note that on December 25, 2024, an AZAL passenger plane crashed near the Aktau airport in Kazakhstan. As a result of the accident, 38 people died and 29 were injured.
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