“Fired an anti-aircraft robot” • The four indications that point to Russian air defenses
It is still unclear what caused the plane crash in Kazakhstan on Wednesday morning, and an investigation into the incident is ongoing, according to the country’s authorities.
But from several quarters there have been unconfirmed reports that the plane was fired upon. Among others, based on images from the wreck that show holes in the hull.
Drone attacks
According to the lieutenant colonel, Jörgen Elfving, there are a number of factors that indicate that the plane was shot down – probably by Russia. Among other things, Ukrainian drone attacks against Grozny in the Russian sub-republic of Chechnya were underway at the time of the crash.
– Firstly, there were drone attacks when the plane was on its way to its final destination Grozny, says Elfving. It was probably the drone attacks that caused the plane not to get permission to land in Grozny and chose another airport to land at, says Elfving.
The head of Chechnya’s Security Council, Khamzat Kadyrov, has also confirmed that a drone attack on Grozny took place on Wednesday morning.
Interference with GPS
There are also reports of GPS interference during the onward journey from Grozny, adds Elfving.
– It indicates the use of tele-weapons to possibly disrupt the drones in connection with Grozny.
Details of explosion
In addition, there is information from passengers on board that an explosion occurred next to the plane. A passenger who survived the crash says “something exploded” when the plane tried to make an emergency landing in Grozny.
In addition to this, there are also pictures of shrapnel damage to the fuselage, which also indicates that the plane was fired upon.
– Added to this is what Azerbaijani government sources say that the Russian air defense is behind this.
According to the sources, the missile was fired at the Azerbaijan Airlines plane above Grozny, and exploded next to the aircraft – mid-flight
“A mistake”
According to Elfving, it is likely that they could not identify the plane and thus did not have the opportunity to distinguish it from a drone and fired an anti-aircraft robot.
– The probability is that this is a mistake, either that the technology has failed or that the human factor is behind it. This is not the first time that the Russian air defense has shot down if I use the expression ‘own flight’.
The plane, which was on its way from Azerbaijan’s capital Baku to the Russian city of Grozny, crashed three kilometers from the city of Aktau, near the Caspian Sea. There were 67 people on board, including 62 passengers and five crew members. Among the survivors are at least 32 people, including two children.