Photo taken on March 13, 2021 shows the site of an aircraft crash at the airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan. (Photo: Xinhua)

NUR-SULTAN, March 14 (Xinhua) -- The National Security Committee of Kazakhstan on Sunday paid tribute to crew members killed in Saturday's crash of an An-26 military transport aircraft, according to the press service of the committee.

"The crew of the An-26 military transport aircraft was experienced and professionally trained, until the end of their lives they were faithful to the oath and military honor," the committee said in a statement.

"The fond memory of them will forever remain in the hearts of the employees of the national security agencies of Kazakhstan. We sincerely share the bitterness of this heavy and irreplaceable loss," the statement said.

It added that the crashed plane belonged to the Aviation Service of the committee.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev expressed his condolences to the families and friends of the fallen servicemen on his Twitter account on Saturday night.

"I wish the victims a speedy recovery. Upon my instructions, work has begun to investigate the plane crash. Such incidents should not be repeated," the president tweeted.

The plane disappeared from the radar on the Nur-Sultan-Almaty route on Saturday afternoon and made an emergency landing. It caught fire while landing at the runway.

Among the six crew members on board, four were killed and two others were hospitalized. The Almaty Mayor's Office said the wounded are in extremely serious condition with fractures, burns, and craniocerebral injuries.