Azerbaijan Airlines points to ‘external interference’ in Kazakhstan plane crash

Azerbaijan Airlines, the carrier of the passenger jet that crashed in Kazakhstan on December 25, has said that the initial investigations revealed that the accident occurred “as a result of physical and technical external interference,” CNN reported, while citing Azerbaijan’s state news agency AZERTAC.

Earlier, reports claimed that a Russian anti-aircraft system was likely behind the plane crash.

At least 38, including two pilots, of the 67 people on the jet were killed during the crash, Kazakh authorities said.

On Friday, the Russian government said that the plane was sidetracked from its slated destination in Chechnya’s Grozny due to Ukrainian drones in the area, along with the fog.

While the passenger jet was attempting to land in southern Russia, “Ukrainian combat drones were carrying out terrorist attacks on civilian infrastructure in the cities of Grozny and Vladikavkaz,” Dmitry Yadrov, head of Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency, was quoted as saying by CNN in its report.

In the wake of this, according to Yadrov, the airspace in the area was shut, which indicated that any aircraft flying within the zone needed to leave immediately.

Addressing the media, Yadrov said that the pilot of flight J2-8243 unsuccessfully tried to land in Gronzy twice. The authorities advised them to land in other airports; however, as per Yadrov, the pilot “decided to proceed to the Aktau airport” across the Caspian Sea in Kazakhstan. He went on to say that there was a dense layer of fog in the area at the time of the incident.

Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, accused Russian media on Friday of spreading lies about the plane crash. He said Moscow had “forced the damaged jet to cross the sea, most likely to conceal evidence of their crime.”

“Photos and videos from the cabin and after the crash are a smoking gun,” Sybiha said. He called for an investigation to ensure accountability.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Russian government warned against speculating on the cause of the crash of a passenger plane in Kazakhstan.