Preliminary investigation confirms Russian missile caused Azerbaijan Airlines crash

[u/DomesticErrorist22]

https://www.euronews.com/2024/12/26/exclusive-preliminary-investigation-confirms-russian-missile-over-grozny-caused-aktau-cras

[u/DomesticErrorist22]

From the article:

Azerbaijani government sources have exclusively confirmed to Euronews on Thursday that a Russian surface-to-air missile caused the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in Aktau on Wednesday.

According to the sources, the missile was fired at Flight 8432 during drone air activity above Grozny, and the shrapnel hit the passengers and cabin crew as it exploded next to the aircraft mid-flight.

Government sources have told Euronews that the damaged aircraft was not allowed to land at any Russian airports despite the pilots’ requests for an emergency landing, and it was ordered to fly across the Caspian Sea towards Aktau in Kazakhstan.

According to data, the plane’s GPS navigation systems were jammed throughout the flight path above the sea.

The missile was fired from a Pantsir-S air defence system, Baku-based international outlet AnewZ reported, citing Azerbaijani government sources.

According to Russian sources, at the time the Azerbaijan Airlines flight was passing over the territory of Chechnya, Russian air defence forces were actively attempting to shoot down Ukrainian UAVs.

The head of the Security Council of the Chechen Republic, Khamzat Kadyrov, confirmed that a drone attack on Grozny took place on Wednesday morning, noting that there were no casualties or damage.

[u/suddenly-scrooge → u/DomesticErrorist22]

while it started as gross negligence, the russians definitely tried to murder those people to destroy the evidence in the caspian sea

[u/pinkjello → u/suddenly-scrooge]

Genuine question, if they were trying to destroy the evidence, why didn’t they just let them land in a Russian airport? Then they could’ve refused to allow the release/investigation of the airplane. Instead, the plane landed elsewhere, and investigators have free rein. Maybe they were betting the plane wouldn’t make it to another country’s soil?

[u/iron_and_carbon → u/pinkjello]

I suspect it was more of the standard ‘make this someone else’s problem’ attitude that pervades Russian bureaucracy. Rather than organising a competent coverup everyone scrambled to make the plane not their problem and hopefully go away by falling into the sea

[u/igotbanneddd → u/iron_and_carbon]

As someone who studied a russian serial killer who was on the loose for over 20 years for a school project, I agree with your statement.