Summary
An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed in Kazakhstan, killing 38 and injuring 29, with speculation mounting that Russia’s military may have been involved.
Experts doubt Russia’s suggestion of a bird strike, citing damage to the plane’s fuselage consistent with shrapnel from an airborne weapon.
The plane’s GPS system was reportedly malfunctioning, and survivors reported hearing an explosion before the crash.
Investigations by Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Russia are ongoing, with black boxes recovered.
The incident evokes comparisons to the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17.
Well, there’s bureaucracy for you. They probably didn’t do any focus-group testing whatsoever to see what appealed more. shakes head sadly