Kazakh Airplane Crash Kills 21

Kazakh airplane crash kills 21 < br />

2013-01-31 11:45:36 GMT+7 (ICT)

ASTANA, KAZAKHSTAN (BNO NEWS) -- Twenty-one people were confirmed dead after a passenger airplane crashed in Kazakhstan, local authorities said Tuesday.

The Bombardier Challenger CRJ200 aircraft crashed shortly after 1 p.m. local time on Tuesday afternoon, around seven kilometers from the airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city.

Kazakh emergency officials confirmed the accident, stating that 21 people were killed, including 16 passengers and 5 crew members. There were no survivors.

Officials also explained that the pilot of the aircraft had been trying to land, but was forced to turn away due to bad weather and poor visibility. However, it lost control and crashed near the airport. While some reports indicated that the aircraft broke in two parts due to the impact, others said it also caught fire.

The aircraft was operated by private Kazakh airline, SCAT and was traveling from the northern city of Kokshetau to Almaty. Emergency teams were able to locate the aircraft's flight recorder, which will be sent to and analyzed at the Interstate Aviation Committee in Moscow, as investigations were launched.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in a statement expressed condolences to the victims' families, who will be receiving aid from the government.

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