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Disturbing new video shows the moment an Azerbaijan plane crashed on Christmas in Kazakhstan — and other footage captured the bloody aftermath of the wounded emerging from the deadly wreckage.

Various footage from cell phones shows the Embraer 190 passenger jet plummeting into the ground, killing 38 people in a fiery explosion just outside of Aktau, and the moments after as emergency crews flocked to the scene of the carnage.

Disturbing video footage shows the moment an Azerbaijan passenger flight crashed in Kazakhstan. via REUTERS
The plane erupted in a fireball as it collided with the ground. east2west news

Azerbaijan Airlines Flt. J2-8243 departed from the Azerbaijan capital of Baku and was headed for Grozny, Russia, when the pilot took the aircraft hundreds of miles off course and was possibly forced to land because of a bird strike.

However, that theory was thrown into question after it was revealed that one of the plane’s oxygen tanks had exploded — prompting some to wonder whether the jet unknowingly crossed paths with Russian air defenses, the Telegraph reports.

The plane was carrying 62 passengers and five crew members when it crashed Wednesday. Twenty-nine people were found alive and hospitalized — including two children — while 38 were reported dead by AFP by Wednesday afternoon.

Both pilots were reported dead by medical workers who spoke to the news agency Interfax, and some of the survivors were in critical condition, according to Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry.

One video, which was widely circulated online and corroborated by Storyful, depicted a mangled airplane fuselage laying on the ground as dazed passengers stumbling and limping around as first responders attempted to rescue others.

A woman could be heard crying out as another conscious person with a bloodied left foot was dragged on the ground away from the demolished aircraft.

Another video taken inside the downed plane appeared to briefly show someone’s bloody hair before panning through the fractured aircraft — with debris and people everywhere — as someone could be heard repeatedly moaning in pain.

On board were 37 Azerbaijanis, 16 Russians, six Kazakhstanis and three Kyrgyzstan citizens.

Additional videos surfaced showing the bloodied passengers stumbling out of the wreckage. east2west news
People limped out of the plane as others tried to rescue additional passengers. east2west news

The crash unfolded days after a Ukrainian drone strike in southern Russia. Drone movement between both sides has prompted local airports to close in the past, and at least one airport was closed Wednesday morning.

Russian military bloggers and aviation analysts have fixated on close-up photos showing holes in the plane’s fuselage, suggesting they may have been the result of shrapnel from an anti-aircraft missile, the outlet writes.

Others surmised the plane may have been accidentally shot down after being mistaken for a Ukrainian drone, according to the outlet.


  A portion of the plane’s fuselage could be seen laying on the ground. REUTERS A portion of the plane’s fuselage could be seen laying on the ground. REUTERS

Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia were all looking into the circumstances surrounding the crash.

Ilham Aliyev, president of Azerbaijan, said he was returning home from a trip to Russia where he was due to speak at a summit, according to Russian news agency RIA.

“Unfortunately, Azerbaijan’s president Aliyev was forced to leave St Petersburg. Putin has already called him and expressed his condolences in connection with the crash of the Azerbaijani plane in Aktau,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

“We deeply sympathize with those who lost their relatives and friends in this plane crash and wish a speedy recovery to all those who managed to survive,” he added.

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