Ukrainian Pilot Posthumously Becomes National Hero of Azerbaijan.

Ukrainian pilot Oleksandr Kalianinov was posthumously awarded the title of National Hero of Azerbaijan for saving the passengers of flight AZAL, which crashed in Kazakhstan. This was announced by the Ukrainian ambassador to Azerbaijan Yuriy Husev.

On December 25, flight AZAL crashed in Kazakhstan. The President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev awarded the title of National Hero of Azerbaijan to the crew of this flight.

Oleksandr Kalianinov, a graduate of the Ukrainian State Aviation Academy, saved 29 out of 67 people on board the aircraft. The plane sustained damage over Grozny and crashed near Aktau in Kazakhstan.

Kalianinov was honored by naming one of the classrooms in the Aviation Academy after him. The Azerbaijani diaspora in Ukraine plans to assist in the organization of this classroom, which will become a symbol of heroism and international solidarity.

There is also a possibility of establishing a scholarship in the name of Oleksandr Kalianinov for Azerbaijani pilot students studying at the Aviation Academy in Kropyvnytskyi. This has already been discussed by representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora along with the Aviation Academy and the Embassy of Ukraine.

It should be noted that the Embraer plane, which was flying from Baku to Grozny, crashed at Aktau airport. There were 67 passengers and 5 crew members on board.

The head of Rosaviatsiya, Dmitry Yadrov, noted that thick fog and lack of visibility were the main causes of the aviation disaster.

Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Ukrainian Center for Countering Disinformation, stated that the crash of the plane in Kazakhstan occurred because of a Russian surface-to-air missile system (SAM).