The Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed on Christmas Day was allegedly “shot down” by Russian air defences, government sources have claimed.
This comes following an investigation into the crash. The Azerbaijan government report claimed the aircraft was hit by a Russian Pantsir-S air defence system, according to The Sun.
Russian media downplayed the incident as having been caused by a flock of birds, a claim that was strongly disputed by Ukrainian government officials. The flight crashed in a fireball near the Kazakhstan city of Aktau on Christmas Day morning, reports the Mirror.
Originally, the flight had taken off from Baku in Azerbaijan and was en route to Grozy in Russia’s southern Chechnya region. After making distressing calls to air traffic controllers, pilots went hundreds of miles off course toward Kazakhstan.
At least 38 people are understood to have been killed in the crash. The plane was carrying dozens of passengers, including several children. It has been reported that at least seven people were taken to a nearby hospital with severe injuries. Among those injured are two children.
Dozens of emergency responders raced to the scene of the crash and were seen battling flames as thick black smoke rose from the wreckage. They later found the black box, which later revealed the final transmissions from the pilot to air traffic controllers.
Pilots said the plane had suffered “control failure” and that they believed the incident was due to a “bird strike.” The pilot then said he intended to return to the much closer airport of Baku.
At 8:20am local time, the flight’s scheduled arrival time, the pilot says: “Left 360, my plane is losing control.” According to leaked transcripts, one minute later the crew decided to make for Makhachkala, a Russian airport on the Caspian Sea.
Following the crash, Kazakhstan refused Russia and Azerbaijan were denied permission to examine the crash site. “This way we will have all the facts, the black box and the evidence,” said a member of the Kazakhstan investigation commission.
Amid ongoing speculation, independent investigative journalists from Volya Telegram said a drone in Grozny triggered air defence systems. “The Pantsirs began shooting down everything that was in the air at that moment. Grozny airport was closed for flights…
“But the passenger plane was already landing, which [air traffic control] prohibited at the last moment. The crew, according to the passengers, made two more attempts to land, after the last of which something exploded near the plane.
“The damaged Embraer was prohibited from landing in Grozny and tried to reach the airport in Aktau, Kazakhstan, but crashed nearby. The crew did everything possible not to crash the plane, but to land it.”
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