Azerbaijan Airlines Crash: Missile Attack Over Chechnya
**In a tragic incident, 38 lives were lost when an Azerbaijan Airlines flight met with disaster over Chechnya.** Azerbaijani officials have reported that the crash was the result of a surface-to-air missile fired by Russian forces. The plane was flying at the time through an area where Russian air defense units were engaged in attempts to intercept Ukrainian drones, leading to a catastrophic chain of events.
Russian sources have suggested that the missile exploded near the aircraft, sending shrapnel into the passenger cabin. Despite the pilots’ urgent requests for an emergency landing at nearby Russian airports, their pleas were reportedly denied. Instead, the plane was diverted over the Caspian Sea towards Kazakhstan, complicating an already dire situation.
Further complicating matters, disruptions to the aircraft’s GPS navigation systems during the flight contributed to a loss of control, exacerbating the perilous circumstances facing the crew and passengers. This unfortunate combination of factors ultimately led to the devastating crash in Kazakhstan.
Following the wreckage’s discovery, shrapnel marks were found on the fuselage of the downed aircraft, indicating the violent nature of the incident. The Baku-based news agency AnewZ, citing Azerbaijani government sources, has claimed that the aircraft was shot down by a Russian Pantsir-S air defense system.
Conversely, Russian officials have maintained that their air defense operations were solely focused on targeting Ukrainian drones during the incident. In a related development, Hamzat Kadirov, Chairman of the Chechen Security Council, confirmed that a drone attack had occurred in Grozny earlier that week. However, he stated that there were no reported casualties or damage resulting from the drone strike.
