The devices originated in Lithuania, on Russia’s border. Lithuania, like its Baltic neighbours, is a member of both the EU and Nato but also carries a large ethnic Russian minority and is thought to have been infiltrated by Kremlin agents.
But Laurynas Kasciunas, Lithuania’s defence minister, said there were no indications a bomb or sabotage had crashed the DHL cargo plane.
“So far there are no signs or facts that this is a sabotage or terrorist act, there really aren’t any. It is said that there was some kind of external influence on the plane,” he said
Photos from the crash site showed smoke rising from a smashed two-storey house. By the side of the smashed house, lie the broken cockpit and engine of the plane.