On January 7, 2025, Brazilian air force investigators finalized the extraction of data from two black box recorders belonging to an Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed in Kazakhstan on December 25, 2024. The data has been transferred to Kazakh authorities for further analysis.
The aircraft, a Brazilian-made Embraer-190, was reportedly shot down by a Russian air defense missile, according to Azerbaijan. Moscow claims its missiles were deployed to target Ukrainian drones in the region. The plane had aborted its landing in Grozny, Chechnya, before crash-landing in Kazakhstan, resulting in the deaths of 38 out of 67 passengers.
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has publicly criticized Russia, accusing it of obscuring the truth and demanding accountability for what he termed the 'criminal' targeting of the passenger plane. While President Vladimir Putin expressed regret over the incident, he has not addressed allegations regarding the involvement of Russian weaponry.
The Brazilian air force stated that the data extraction adhered to international protocols for aircraft accident investigations. Investigators from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Russia participated in the inquiry in Brazil, with Kazakhstan responsible for releasing the findings.