Jakarta – Azerbaijani government officials leaked preliminary investigation claims regarding the cause of the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash on Wednesday (12/25/2024).
There is increasing suspicion that the Embraer 190 jet aircraft crashed near the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan, due to a Russian surface-to-air missile.
Several sources from the Azerbaijani government told Euronews on Thursday (26/12) that a Russian missile was the cause of the commercial plane crash.
They said that when the plane was airborne, there was drone activity over the city of Grozny, Russia. Russian surface-to-air missiles then shot down the aircraft during their operation against the drone. The missile exploded next to the plane, and its shrapnel hit the passengers.
According to those government sources, the pilot attempted to request an emergency landing at any Russian airport but was not granted permission.
The aircraft, which had been damaged by bullet fragments, was ordered to fly across the Caspian Sea to the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan.
A report by the Baku-based international outlet AnewZ stated that the missile was fired from the Pantsir-S air defense system. The report cites sources from the Azerbaijani government.
Sources from Russia also stated that at the time Azerbaijan Airlines was flying over Chechnya, Russian air defense forces were attempting to shoot down a Ukrainian drone.
The head of the Security Council of the Chechen Republic, Khamzat Kadyrov, confirmed that a drone attack occurred in Grozny on Wednesday morning. There were no casualties in the drone attack.
The Azerbaijani government has not yet issued an official statement. However, if this report is confirmed, this incident will mark the second time Russian forces have shot down a commercial aircraft after the MH17 crash in Ukraine. In fact, Russian citizens were on that flight.
A U.S. official had previously indicated that the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed due to a missile strike. This incident has killed at least 38 people out of a total of 67 passengers. On social media, photos of a large hole in the tail of the plane are circulating, further strengthening the suspicion that the plane crashed due to being shot down.
The ill-fated Azerbaijan Airlines plane was carrying around 67 people, consisting of 62 passengers and five crew members. The plane was traveling from Baku to Grozny and crashed on Wednesday near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan. December 26 was declared a national day of mourning in Azerbaijan for the accident.
