Brazilian Air Force Completes Decryption of Black Box Recordings from AZAL Aircraft Crash in Kazakhstan

The Brazilian Air Force's Center for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA) has finished decrypting the black box data from the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane that crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, in December.

Sources within the agency confirmed to multiple news outlets that data extraction, collection, and verification from both flight recorders have been successfully completed.

The Brazilian Air Force has shared the decrypted data with the relevant authorities in Kazakhstan. The crash occurred on December 25, when an Embraer 190, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed approximately 3 kilometers from Aktau airport, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.

Azerbaijan suspects the plane was shot down by Russian air defenses, which Moscow confirms were active in the region at the time. Russia claims the aircraft approached Grozny amidst heavy fog while Ukrainian drones were attacking the city.

Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed regret for the "incident" occurring in Russian airspace but has not addressed the allegations that Russian weapons were involved in downing the plane.

The flight recorders, which contain cockpit conversations and flight data, were analyzed in Brazil, but Kazakhstan is responsible for releasing the findings. "All data was handed over to the Kazakhstan investigation authority in line with international aircraft accident investigation protocols," Brazil's air force said.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, a close ally of Moscow, has demanded an apology, responsibility, and punishment for those accountable for the “criminal” downing of the plane. In a rare rebuke, Aliyev criticized Russia for "concealing" the incident's causes and presenting "delusional versions" that have sparked "justifiable anger."

Investigators from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Russia visited Brazil to review the flight data, which was examined by the Brazilian Air Force's Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center.