A Russian military expert has suggested that the Azerbaijan Airlines flight that crashed in Kazakhstan may have been brought down by an anti-aircraft missile. The flight, which took off from Baku and was heading to Grozny, Chechnya, was reportedly hit by a Russian surface-to-air missile fired during drone air activity above Grozny. The missile caused damage to the aircraft, likely due to shrapnel hitting the passengers and crew mid-flight. The expert mentioned that Ukrainian drones were flying over Chechnya at the time, hinting at a possible attack by Russia’s air defenses.
The damaged aircraft was not allowed to land at any Russian airports, despite requests for an emergency landing from the pilots. Instead, they were instructed to fly towards Aktau in Kazakhstan. It was reported that the plane’s GPS navigation systems were jammed throughout the flight above the Caspian Sea. Russian authorities have urged against speculating on the cause of the crash until the investigation is complete. They emphasized the need to wait for the investigation to conclude before making any assumptions about what happened.
Russian officials claimed that the pilots diverted to Aktau after a bird strike caused an emergency on board, leading to the denial of landing permission at Russian airports. Azerbaijan’s President and Kazakhstan officials refrained from commenting on the crash’s cause, leaving it up to investigators to determine what happened. It was mentioned that weather conditions may have forced the plane to change its planned course, but no definitive statements have been made regarding the crash at this time.
If the preliminary data from the investigation suggests that a Russian missile was responsible for the crash, this would not be the first time Russian forces have targeted a commercial aircraft. In 2014, Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 was shot down by Russian-backed forces over eastern Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of all 298 people on board. The similarities between these two incidents raise concerns about the safety of commercial flights in regions where tensions between various countries are high. The investigation into the recent crash will provide further clarity on what led to the tragic event and any potential implications.
