OREANDA-NEWS  A passenger plane carrying out a Baku – Grozny flight crashed near the city of Aktau. There were 67 passengers and 5 crew members on board, for whom this flight was the last.

"The embraer EMB 190 of Azerbaijan Airlines, which was flying from Baku to Grozny, circled over Aktau airport in Kazakhstan before falling. Previously, the crew requested an emergency landing and was waiting for permission," Mash noted.

Readovka reported that the aircraft was circling in the sky, dumping fuel. According to sources, operational services were working on the spot. "They were probably ready to receive the vessel, which, judging by the circles in the sky, was about to make an emergency landing," the journalists emphasized.

The plane from Baku was diverted to Makhachkala and then to Aktau due to fog in Grozny, the press service of the airport of the Chechen capital told RIA Novosti.

"The passenger plane that crashed in Kazakhstan, according to SHOT, took off today at 06:56 Moscow time. Before the emergency, Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2 8243 had previously requested an emergency landing. The day before, the plane performed a flight to Volgograd. The board is 11 years old and was manufactured in 2013. There are 106 economy class seats on the plane. The plane was used for some time by Buta Airways, a subsidiary of Azerbaijan Airlines. After that, Azerbaijan Airlines started using it. Previously, there may be survivors," SHOT said.

Baza reports that the crashed plane flying from Baku to Grozny could have changed course due to the threat of a drone attack on Chechnya.

"According to preliminary data, Grozny was attacked by several UAVs, as a result of which a Carpet plan was announced at the city's airport. There were 67 passengers and 5 crew members on board the Embraer," the source added.

Official information about the dead and injured has not yet been received. Disaster data is being updated.