An Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet that crashed in Kazakhstan on Wednesday killing 38 people was shot down by a Russian air defence system, according to four sources in Azerbaijan familiar with the investigation.
Flight J2-8243 came down near the city of Aktau after diverting from its scheduled route from Baku to Grozny.
The aircraft had strayed hundreds of miles off course, crossing the Caspian Sea before crashing in a fireball that was captured on video by horrified onlookers.
The incident occurred in an area where Moscow has recently been using air defence systems against Ukrainian drone strikes.
A man lays flowers to Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Moscow
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A view of the scene after an Azerbaijan Airlines flight with 67 people on board, crashed near the Kazakh Caspian city of Aktau
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Footage of the wreckage showed suspicious holes in the fuselage consistent with anti-aircraft fire damage. Of the 67 passengers and crew aboard the Embraer 190 aircraft, 29 people survived the Christmas Day crash.
The plane had initially departed from Baku airport at 7:55am, destined for the Russian city of Grozny in Chechnya. Flight tracking data showed the aircraft disappeared from radar whilst flying over Dagestan along the Caspian Sea coast.
It later reappeared off course and flying low above the water near western Kazakhstan before the devastating impact. Dramatic footage captured the moment the plane hit the ground, bursting into flames and breaking into several parts. Twenty-two survivors are being treated in hospital, with seven in serious condition.
According to an Azerbaijani source familiar with the investigation, preliminary findings indicate the aircraft was struck by a Russian Pantsir-S air defence system.
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Emergency specialists work at the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet
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The plane’s communications were reportedly paralysed by electronic warfare systems as it approached Grozny.
“No one claims that it was done on purpose. However, taking into account the established facts, Baku expects the Russian side to confess to the shooting down of the Azerbaijani aircraft,” the source told Reuters.
Flight data revealed the aircraft transmitted erratic signals up to 75 minutes before the crash, suggesting the crew had lost partial flight control.
The plane experienced GPS interference, with no data transmitted between 04.25 and 04.37 UTC.
Flags on public buildings and in squares across Azerbaijan are lowered to half-mast in Baku
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Aviation security firm Osprey Flight Solutions noted that Russian regions of Dagestan and Chechnya had been targeted by Ukrainian military drones this month.
The Russian defence ministry had reported downing 59 Ukrainian drones over several regions earlier on Christmas Day. Flight operations were temporarily suspended at Russia’s Kazan Airport due to drone activity.
Nato has called for a thorough investigation into the crash, with spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah stating on X: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and victims of Azerbaijan Airlines flight J28243.”