Russia to compensate Azerbaijan for downed AZAL aircraft
On April 15, the Foreign Ministries of Azerbaijan and Russia made a joint statement regarding the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) Flight 8243 crash.
«In accordance with agreements between the Presidents of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation during their meeting in Dushanbe on 9 October 2025, the Parties have reached an appropriate settlement of the consequences, including the issue of payment of compensation in connection with the crash of the Embraer 190 airplane belonging to Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) near the city of Aktau on 25 December 2024, resulting from the unintended operation of an air defense system in the airspace of the Russian Federation. The steps undertaken confirm the mutual intention to build further mutually beneficial cooperation within the framework of allied interaction,» the statement said.
The sides voiced confidence that the development of Azerbaijan-Russia relations based on mutual respect will further promote their strengthening and the expansion of cooperation.
«We once again extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives in the airplane crash and share the pain of this irreparable loss with all those affected by the tragedy,» the statement read.
Background
The accident occurred on Dec. 25, 2024. The aircraft, en route from Baku, Azerbaijan, to Grozny, Russia, crashed three kilometers from Aktau International Airport. The majority of the occupants were nationals of Azerbaijan.
Reuters, citing an Azerbaijani government source, said that the aircraft was shot down by the Russian Pantsir-S missile system. However, the country’s President Ilham Aliyev told Fox News he did not view the strike as intended.
The preliminary report issued by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport describes numerous punctures and partial-through damages of different shapes and sizes found in the rear fuselage, empennage, rudder, and elevators. Several points exhibited damage with regular rectangular shapes, which can indicate the intrusion of external objects.
