Russia makes first comments on Kazakhstan plane crash

Russia's civil aviation chief, Dmitri Yadrov, addressed the Azerbaijan Airlines crash near Aktau, Kazakhstan, citing low visibility and a terrorist threat from Ukraine as factors at Grozny airport, where the plane was unable to land. Russia has pledged full cooperation with Kazakh authorities in the investigation. Azerbaijan Airlines has named the preliminary cause of the plane crash near Aktau. The preliminary cause of the crash was “physical and technical external impact,“ the airline's press service said in a statement. An Azerbaijani MP, Rasim Musabekov, accused Russia of downing the jet over Grozny, demanding Moscow apologize, ensure justice, and pay compensation for the crash. Azerbaijan Airlines has since suspended flights to seven Russian cities. Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 plane crash-landed on Wednesday morning near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after veering off its route from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny in Chechnya, and flying over the Caspian Sea. Of 67 people on board, 29 survived. #Azerbaijan #Russia #Azal #plane