Azerbaijan Airlines indefinitely suspends flights from Baku to Russian city of Astrakhan

Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) on Monday announced that it indefinitely suspended its flights between Baku and the Russian city of Astrakhan.

A statement by AZAL on Telegram said flights between Astrakhan and the Azerbaijani capital were suspended indefinitely due to the recent and regular closure of the airspace over the Russian city.

It further said that those who will not be able to fly due to the measures taken will be able to receive a full refund or re-book their tickets.

AZAL has suspended its flights to many Russian cities since late December, most recently on Jan. 8, when the airline suspended all of its flights between Baku and the Russian city of Kazan for an indefinite period.

The decisions came after an AZAL plane, en route from Baku to the city of Grozny in Russia's Chechen Republic, crashed 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) from the Kazakh city of Aktau on the Caspian Sea coast on Dec. 25, 2024, killing 38 out of 67 people on board.

While an investigation into the crash is underway, initial statements said a bird collision might have caused the Embraer 190 aircraft to crash, though footage from the site revealed large holes in the tail section of the aircraft, leading to speculation of a possible attack.

A day after the incident, senior Azerbaijani officials confirmed to Anadolu reports suggesting the crash was caused by a Russian missile system.

Russian President Vladimir Putin later held a phone conversation with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, during which he apologized for the incident above Russian airspace and offered condolences.

A day later, Aliyev said the crashed plane's tail was severely damaged as a result of "weapons fire from the ground," demanding that Moscow issue an "acknowledgment of guilt, punishment of those responsible, and payment of compensation."