Russia blamed for shooting down passenger plane; Putin apologizes
Azerbaijan plane crash likely shot down by Russia
Aviation experts said Thursday that Russian air defense fire was likely responsible for the Azerbaijani plane crash the day before that killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured. LiveNOW's Austin Westfall spoke about the new reports with Cliff May, founder of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Vladimir Putin apologized Saturday after the US and Azerbaijan accused Russia of shooting down a passenger plane, killing 38 people.
Putin, speaking to his Azerbaijani counterpart, called it a "tragic incident," but stopped short of saying it was one of Russia’s war weapons that caused the deadly passenger plane crash.
The plane was flying Wednesday from Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, when it turned toward Kazakhstan and crashed while making an attempt to land. There were 62 passengers and five crew members on board. Officials say 29 of them survived.
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According to an official statement from the Kremlin, air defense systems were firing near Grozny as the plane attempted to land. The weapons were fired in response to Ukrainian drone strikes, the Kremlin said.
A view of the scene after an Azerbaijan Airlines flight with 67 people on board, traveling from the Azerbaijani capital Baku to Grozny in Russias Chechnya region, crashed near the Kazakh Caspian city of Aktau on December 25, 2024. (Photo by Issa Tazh
According to a Kremlin readout of the call, Putin apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev "for the fact that the tragic incident occurred in Russian airspace."
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The U.S. and Azerbaijan both said the crash was caused by an external weapon, echoing outside experts who say it was shot down by Russian air defense systems.
Passengers and crew who survived the crash told Azerbaijani media that they heard loud noises on the aircraft as it was circling over Grozny, according to the Associated Press.