Azerbaijan Plane Crash: External Damages, Pilot’s Distress Call Spark ‘Sabotage’ Theories

Last Updated:December 26, 2024, 08:41 IST

The shrapnel marks on the rear fuselage of the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft, which crashed near the city of Aktau, sparked several ‘sabotage’ theories.

The shrapnel marks on the rear fuselage of the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft, which crashed near the city of Aktau, killing at least 38 passengers out of 67 onboard, has sparked several ‘sabotage’ theories on social media.

The airliner, Embraer 190, took off from Baku in Azerbaijan and was headed to the Russian city of Grozny in the North Caucasus. Reports claimed that the plane crashed after it was diverted and attempted an emergency landing kilometres from Aktau, a city in Kazakhstan.

While Russia’s aviation watchdog stated that the pilot was forced to attempt an emergency landing after a bird strike in Aktau, some ‘sabotage’ theories claimed that it could have been mistaken for a Ukrainian drone and shot down by Russian forces. CNN-News18 couldn’t independently verify the authenticity of the claim.

The users pointed out the shrapnel marks on the aircraft’s rear fuselage, saying it doesn’t appear consistent with an avian collision. “The pilots sent a distress call around the time Russian air defence was responding to a Ukrainian drone attack,” reported BNO News.

When asked whether the plane was shot down, Kazakhstan Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbayev said, “I dare not make premature statements,” reported BNO News.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the plane’s intended destination in southern Russia was in an area where Moscow’s air defences have recently battled Ukrainian drones. In 2018, international investigators concluded that Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, which was shot down on July 17, 2014, while flying over eastern Ukraine, was hit by a Russian missile.

Fuelling the speculations behind what could have caused the crash, an X user said, “Speculation is growing that the Baku-Grozny Azerbaijan Airlines flight may have been shot down by Russian air defence, which mistook it for a Ukrainian #drone. Damage to the fuselage will remind many of the MH17 airliner shot down by the Russians in East Ukraine.”

Another user noted that the plane may have been mistakenly shot down by either Russian or Ukrainian air defences, possibly confusing it with a drone launched by the opposing nation.

Bird Strike Behind Crash?

An oxygen tank exploded inside the Azerbaijan Airlines passenger aircraft which crashed on Wednesday in western Kazakhstan, Kazakh media outlets reported. They also said that flyers started to fall unconscious before the flight crashed.

Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 had flown hundreds of miles off its scheduled route to crash on the opposite shore of the Caspian Sea, after what Russia’s aviation watchdog said was an emergency that may have been caused by a bird strike, according to a report by Reuters.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev cut short a visit to Russia where he had been due to attend an informal summit of leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States, a grouping of former Soviet nations, his office said in a statement. He also declared Thursday a day of national mourning.

The flight’s course on Flight Radar showed it crossing the Caspian Sea from its normal route and then circling over the area where it eventually crashed. Kazakhstan said it had opened an investigation.

Why Did The Plane Change Its Course?

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said preliminary investigation revealed that the plane changed its course between Baku and Grozny due to worsening weather conditions and headed to Aktau airport, where it crashed upon landing.

While Aliyev did mention that the plane changed course due to poor weather, he maintained that the reason behind the fatal crash of the plane would be fully investigated.

Those aboard the plane included 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russian nationals, six Kazakhs and three Kyrgyzstan nationals.