Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8432, which crashed during an emergency landing near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on Wednesday, was reportedly struck by a Russian surface-to-air missile.
The missile, fired amidst drone activity over Grozny, hit the aircraft mid-flight, scattering shrapnel that injured passengers and crew. Despite the pilots’ calls for an emergency landing, Russian airports denied the request, forcing the plane to continue across the Caspian Sea toward Aktau.
Reports indicate the aircraft’s GPS navigation systems were jammed during the flight, complicating its course. The missile was reportedly launched from a Pantsir-S air defense system.
Russian sources acknowledged that air defense forces were targeting Ukrainian drones over Chechnya at the time. Chechen officials confirmed a drone attack on Grozny earlier that day but reported no casualties or damage.
If confirmed, this would be the second incident in a decade involving Russian forces downing a commercial aircraft, following the 2014 MH17 tragedy in Ukraine. The crash claimed the lives of passengers, including Russian and neighboring country nationals.
Investigators are now probing the circumstances of the missile strike, the denial of emergency landing rights at Russian airports, and the forced rerouting of the damaged aircraft.
