The head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate (HUR), Lt-Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, has confirmed to The War Zone that Azerbaijan Airlines Flight JS-8432 was shot down by a Russian Pantsir S1 air defense system over Russian territory before crashing in Kazakhstan on 25 December.
Reuters, citing four sources close to the Azerbaijani investigation, reported the aircraft was downed by Russian air defense after deviating into an area where Moscow “has used air defense systems against Ukrainian drone strikes in recent months.“
Euromaidan Press, however, found no evidence that Russia used surface-to-air missile during previous drone attacks on Grozny prior to 25 December, the flight’s intended destination, as local sources noted only small arms were used in earlier incidents. However, footage from 25 December confirmed Pantsir deployment, including video of a drone being shot down by a missile and a photo showing a Pantsir missile’s first stage.
According to Euronews, citing Azerbaijani government sources, the missile struck Flight 8432 during drone activity above Grozny. The sources told Euronews that after the strike, the damaged aircraft was denied landing permission at Russian airports despite emergency requests and was directed to fly across the Caspian Sea toward Aktau, located nearly 450 km east of Grozny.
The same government sources revealed to Euronews that the plane’s GPS navigation systems were jammed throughout its flight over the sea.
The crash resulted in 38 fatalities. The War Zone notes it cannot independently verify these claims while investigations continue, as Russian, Azerbaijani, and Kazakh officials urge caution in drawing conclusions about the incident.
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