Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for a “tragic incident” which happened in Russian airspace involving an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane that crashed after air defences were used against Ukrainian drones.
On Friday a US official and Azerbaijani minister had suggested the plane was hit by a weapon, citing expert analysis and survivor accounts.
Flight J2-8243 crashed on Wednesday in a ball of fire near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after diverting from southern Russia where Ukrainian drones were reported to be attacking several cities. At least 38 people were killed.
Photo: Kazakhstan Emergency Ministry Press Service via AP
“Vladimir Putin apologized for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace and once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured,” the Kremlin said in a statement
The Friday’s assessments by Azerbaijani Ministry of Digital Development and Transportation Rashan Nabiyev and White House national security spokesman John Kirby echoed those made by outside aviation experts who blamed the crash on Russian air defense systems responding to a Ukrainian attack.
The statements raised pressure on Russia, where officials said a drone attack was under way in the region where the flight was heading for a landing.
Kirby told reporters that the US “have seen some early indications that would certainly point to the possibility that this jet was brought down by Russian air defense systems,” but refused to elaborate, citing an ongoing investigation.
The plane was flying from Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, on Wednesday when it turned toward Kazakhstan and crashed while attempting to land. The crash killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured.
Nabiyev told Azerbaijani media that “preliminary conclusions by experts point at external impact,” as does witness testimony.
“The type of weapon used in the impact will be determined during the probe,” Nabiyev said.
Passengers and crew who survived the crash said that they heard loud noises on the aircraft as it was circling over Grozny.
“After the bang... I thought the plane was going to fall apart,” one of the passengers, Subhonkul Rakhimov, said from a hospital.
He said he had begun to recite prayers and prepare for the end after hearing the bang.
“It was obvious that the plane had been damaged in some way,” he said. “It was as if it was drunk — not the same plane anymore.”
Another passenger on the plane said that she also heard a loud bang.
“I was very scared,” Vafa Shabanova said, adding that there was also a second bang.
She was then told by a flight attendant to move to the back of the plane.
Both passengers said there appeared to be a problem with the oxygen levels in the cabin after the bang.
Flight attendant Zulfugar Asadov said landing was denied in Grozny due to fog so the pilot circled at which point there were bangs outside the aircraft.
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