Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer SA 190 aircraft was damaged by Russian air defense systems near Grozny before it crashed in Kazakhstan during an attempted emergency landing, according to Azerbaijan government-backed Caliber news website.

After an Azerbaijan Airlines jet crashed in Kazakhstan, speculation mounted about why the plane went down and whether possible Russian air defense action may have played a role.

An Azerbaijan Airlines plane flying from Baku to Grozny that crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan was shot down by a Russian Pantsir-S air defence system. Source: Reuters, citing its sources Quote: "One of the Azerbaijani sources familiar with Azerbaijan's investigation into the crash told Reuters that preliminary results showed the plane was struck by a Russian Pantsir-S air defence system.