Dozens killed in Azerbaijan Airlines accident

Dozens have died after a passenger plane with 67 people on board crashed in Kazakhstan, local officials said.

Authorities in Azerbaijan, where the flight began, say there are at least 30 survivors.

Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 caught fire while trying to make an emergency landing near the Kazakh city of Aktau.

The plane was on its way to Grozny, Russia The airline told the BBC that the plane changed course due to fog.

A video clip verified by Reuters shows the plane heading towards the ground at high speed, with its landing gear disabled.

Seconds after trying to land, a huge fireball exploded.

The airline said the plane “made an emergency landing” about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) from Aktau.

The plane took off from the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, at 03:55 GMT on Wednesday, and crashed at around 06:28, data from the flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed.

The Ministry of Transport said there were 62 passengers and five crew members on board the Embraer 190.

Most of those on board were Azerbaijani citizens, but there were also some passengers from Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Of the 25 known survivors, 22 were taken to hospital, the Emergencies Ministry said.

Unverified video footage showed emergency services pulling people from under the rubble while survivors crawled out.

Both Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan began investigations into the cause of the accident. Embraer told the BBC that it “stands ready to assist all relevant authorities.”

The BBC has contacted Azerbaijan Airlines for comment.

The plane in question was an Embraer E190, a Brazilian company that is a smaller competitor to Boeing and Airbus and has traditionally had a strong safety record.