On Sunday, Azerbaijan paid tribute to the crew of a passenger plane that crashed on Christmas Day in Kazakhstan. 38 people died in this natural disaster. Thanks to the heroic landing of the pilots, 29 passengers survived.
Captain Igor Kshanjakin and co-pilot Alexander Kalyaninov were Azerbaijani citizens of Russian origin. Pilots and stewardess Khokuma Aliyev were honored at the solemn cemetery on the Avenue of Honor in the center of Baku. The ceremony was attended by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and his wife, the first lady Mehruban Aliyeva.
The pilots were praised for their heroic deeds. While trying to make an emergency landing, they performed a maneuver that allowed 29 passengers to survive. But they themselves died in the accident. In turn, the flight attendant Hakuma Aliyeva kept calm and professional until the last moment, trying to calm down the passengers.
“Only thanks to the courage and professionalism of the crew, the emergency landing was successful,” the office of the presidency of the Republic of Azerbaijan said.
– The pilots were experienced and knew that they would not survive it, – said the president during the ceremony on Sunday. – They showed great heroism and thanks to this several passengers survived, – he added.
“He confirmed what a real hero should be”
The Avenue of Honor in Baku is a cemetery dedicated to outstanding personalities. Here is the burial place of prominent political figures, scientists and writers. Heydar Aliyev, the father of the current president, rests in the cemetery.
Captain Kshanjakin’s daughter said that her father was a pilot devoted to his profession and always deeply took responsibility for passengers. – With his last flight, he confirmed what a real hero should be like, said Kshanjakina.
A plane from Azerbaijan crashed while flying to Russia
The Embraer 190 plane was flying from Baku to the capital of Chechnya, the city of Grozny, Russia. It was diverted while the Russian air defense forces were active in Ukraine attacks and eventually crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan.
Yesterday, in a telephone conversation with President Aliyev, Vladimir Putin apologized for the “tragic incident” that occurred when the plane was in Russian airspace. The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky also contacted the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and expressed his condolences. Zelensky is demanding an explanation from Russia regarding this accident on social networks.
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Main image source: EPA/KAZAKHSTAN MINISTRY OF EMERGENCY
