El Al suspends Moscow flights amid concerns over Russian airspace safety

The crash occurred on December 25th when the Azerbaijan Airlines flight from Heydar Aliyev International Airport (GYD) to Grozny, Russia crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan after being denied an emergency landing in Russian airspace. The aircraft was reportedly transmitting erratic flight data before crashing and was also impacted by GPS spoofing.

During its attempts to land at Grozny amidst low visibility conditions, a Ukrainian drone strike prompted anti-aircraft fire from the ground. The aircraft was allegedly hit by a surface-to-air missile from a Pantsir-S air defense system. Shrapnel from the explosion struck passengers and crew onboard.

Azeri government sources stated that after declaring an emergency, the aircraft was refused permission to land at Russian airports and redirected towards Kazakhstan where it ultimately crashed.

The incident claimed 38 lives out of 67 people onboard. Many survivors were seated towards the tail end of the plane. Data suggests pilots used engine power adjustments for pitch control due to damage sustained by the tailplane during their efforts to prevent further loss of life.

Kazakh authorities confirmed both pilots were among those who perished in what has been described as a heroic effort.