Latest news with #Paladichuk
Novaya Gazeta Europe
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Novaya Gazeta Europe
Leaked note shows Russian military captain admit to ordering missile strike on Azerbaijan Airlines flight — Novaya Gazeta Europe
A leaked note allegedly written by a Russian military captain, in which he takes responsibility for transmitting the final order to shoot down a passenger jet that crashed in Kazakhstan last December, has been made public after Minval, an Azerbaijani media outlet, published the letter on Tuesday. On 25 December, Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, carrying 67 people on board, was on a scheduled flight from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny in the North Caucasus when a Russian surface-to-air missile reportedly struck it. It was denied permission to land in Russia and diverted to Kazakhstan, where the flight later crashed, killing 38 people on board, including both pilots and a flight attendant. In the note, which Minval obtained from an anonymous source, Russian captain Dmitry Paladichuk states that on the morning of 25 December, he spotted a 'potential target' that was difficult to discern due to 'very thick fog' amid a Ukrainian drone attack on Grozny. He says he alerted his superior officers and transmitted the object's coordinates and speed, before receiving the command to destroy the target. He says he then ordered an operator to fire two air defence missiles, shrapnel from the second of which reportedly struck the aircraft. According to The Insider, a Russian investigative outlet that obtained a recording of a telephone conversation in which Paladichuk appears to confirm writing an explanatory note, the letter is most likely genuine. In the recording, Paladichuk asserts that he wrote the note to an 'army commander' after 'shooting at the plane' because 'they demanded it' and confirms distinctive features of his handwriting. The Insider also states that Paladichuk's voice in the recording matches audio evidence originally published alongside the letter by Minval, which further supports the authenticity of the document. On 28 December, three days after the crash, Vladimir Putin apologised for what he called a 'tragic incident' after an aircraft experienced 'external interference' over Russian airspace. However, he did not confirm that the flight had been shot down or admit responsibility. One day later, Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev accused Russia of accidentally shooting down Flight 823 and demanded a full admission of guilt. In February, a preliminary Azerbaijani investigation found that 'foreign metal objects' had damaged the plane before it crashed. According to a senior Azerbaijani government official cited in reporting by Reuters, the 'object' in question referred to a Russian air defence missile. The publishing of Paladichuk's letter comes amid a rapid deterioration in Russian-Azerbaijani relations following the deaths of two Azerbaijani citizens during a police raid in the Russian Urals city of Yekaterinburg on Saturday under unclear circumstances.
Scottish Sun
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Scottish Sun
Chilling audio reveals moment Russians shot down plane on Christmas killing 38… and knew it wasn't a Ukrainian drone
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A CHILLING audio clip has emerged revealing the moment Russians shot down a passenger plane on Christmas that left 38 people dead. New evidence suggests the Russians knew the object in the sky they were aiming at was not a Ukrainian drone. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 7 Emergency specialists work at the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet near the western Kazakh city of Aktau Credit: AFP 7 The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground with several emergency workers and vehicles nearby Credit: AFP 7 Footage shows the inside of the plane just moments before the deadly crash Credit: X/yo2thok 7 Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer E190, carrying 67 passengers from Baku to Grozny in Russia, crashed after crossing the Caspian Sea in Aktau, Kazakhstan. An investigation by the Azerbaijani government found that the plane was hit by a Russian Pantsir-S surface-to-air missile defence system. Russians claimed the city of Grozny was under attack from Ukrainian drones at the time the plane was hit. A chilling voice recording ordering the shooting of the plane was leaked to Azerbaijani media. A person can be heard saying: "Hello! Azimuth 338, range 7,000, altitude 490, speed 118, heading 230." To which a person replies: "Yes, range is now 7. Fire! I said fire!" The first person, understood to be operating the Russian air defence unit, then replies: "Fired!" "Missed… Missed! Again! Fire once more," the other person says "Copy, firing," said the operator before firing the fatal air defence rocket. The voice reporting the coordinates was Captain Dmitry Paladichuk, a Russian air defence officer commanding a missile unit, it has been found. Plane almost tips over as it lands on right-side wheel in rain and heavy wind The devastating exchange was leaked to the Azerbaijan outlet Minval amid deeply strained relations between Moscow and Baku. A leak of handwritten testimony by Captain Paladichuk revealed a gripping account of how he was ordered by an unnamed commander to shoot. In a sworn statement he said: 'I was ordered by phone to destroy the target.' He said: 'At 08:13:30 I ordered the operator to engage. At 08:13:33 the missile cleared the launcher. At 08:13:47 the BM-72V6 [fire] control system reported a miss. "At 08:13:48 I ordered a second engagement…. 'The second missile was launched when the target had the following characteristics: azimuth 311°, distance 8,000 m, altitude 1,300 m, speed 120 m/s.' The plane's speed, around 265 mph, was more than double the speed of most drones. Also, the altitude of the object - between 1,607ft and 4,265ft - indicated it was a plane seeking to land at a nearby airport. 7 A preliminary investigation suggests the jet was downed by a Russian air defence system Credit: AP 7 Flowers and portraits at the Consulate of Azerbaijan in the memory of victims of the Azerbaijan Airlines' crash Credit: AP 7 Sworn statement by Captain Dmitry Paladichuk, leaked by Azerbaijani media Credit: East2West 'This suggests that the military had every indication that the object was a manned aircraft,' said the Insider independent media outlet analysing the leak from media in Azerbaijan. Terrifying footage showed the Embraer aircraft nosediving before smashing into the ground in a fireball. It exploded next to the aircraft, with the shrapnel hitting passengers and cabin crew, the report said. Grozny is the capital of the region of Chechnya, controlled by a close Putin ally and warlord, Ramzan Kadyrov. The use of air defence systems aligned with reports of Ukrainian drone attacks in Chechnya on the morning of Christmas Day. It marked the second time in a decade that Russia has downed a passenger plane after the MH17 crash in Ukraine in 2014. MIRACLE SURVIVORS Dozens of passengers, including children, miraculously survived the horror crash. Around 150 emergency responders rushed to the scene, battling towering flames and thick plumes of black smoke rising ominously into the sky. Meanwhile, an investigative team led by the deputy prosecutor general of Azerbaijan is working at the crash site. They found the black box of the doomed flight which revealed the haunting final words the pilot said just moments before the plane crashed on the ground. Struggling to control the plane, one of the pilots said: "I can't execute, control is lost!" The pilots reportedly tried to take the plane to three different airports but failed to land. But they lost communication with the ground crew before vanishing off the radar for 37 minutes. Footage emerged showing terrified passengers making final video calls and leaving messages as the aircraft began to plunge. Distressed people on board can be seen jumping out of their seats as they try to make sense of the situation. As the oxygen masks dangled in the air, some passengers started to scream in horror, while others called their loved ones and began praying.
The Irish Sun
14 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Chilling audio reveals moment Russians shot down plane on Christmas killing 38… and knew it wasn't a Ukrainian drone
A CHILLING audio clip has emerged revealing the moment Russians shot down a passenger plane on Christmas that left 38 people dead. New evidence suggests the 7 Emergency specialists work at the crash site of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet near the western Kazakh city of Aktau Credit: AFP 7 The wreckage of Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 lays on the ground with several emergency workers and vehicles nearby Credit: AFP 7 Footage shows the inside of the plane just moments before the deadly crash Credit: X/yo2thok 7 Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer E190, carrying 67 passengers from Baku to Grozny in Russia, An investigation by the Azerbaijani government found that the plane was hit by a Russian Pantsir-S surface-to-air missile defence system. Russians claimed the city of Grozny was under attack from Ukrainian drones at the time the plane was hit. A chilling voice recording ordering the shooting of the plane was leaked to Azerbaijani media. A person can be heard saying: "Hello! Azimuth 338, range 7,000, altitude 490, speed 118, heading 230." To which a person replies: "Yes, range is now 7. Fire! I said fire!" The first person, understood to be operating the Russian air defence unit, then replies: "Fired!" "Missed… Missed! Again! Fire once more," the other person says Most read in The US Sun "Copy, firing," said the operator before firing the fatal air defence rocket. The voice reporting the coordinates was Captain Dmitry Paladichuk, a Russian air defence officer commanding a missile unit, it has been found. Plane almost tips over as it lands on right-side wheel in rain and heavy wind The devastating exchange was leaked to the Azerbaijan outlet Minval amid deeply strained relations between Moscow and Baku. A leak of handwritten testimony by Captain Paladichuk revealed a gripping account of how he was ordered by an unnamed commander to shoot. In a sworn statement he said: 'I was ordered by phone to destroy the target .' He said: 'At 08:13:30 I ordered the operator to engage. At 08:13:33 the missile cleared the launcher. At 08:13:47 the BM-72V6 [fire] control system reported a miss. "At 08:13:48 I ordered a second engagement…. 'The second missile was launched when the target had the following characteristics: azimuth 311°, distance 8,000 m, altitude 1,300 m, speed 120 m/s.' The plane's speed, around 265 mph, was more than double the speed of most drones. Also, the altitude of the object - between 1,607ft and 4,265ft - indicated it was a plane seeking to land at a nearby airport. 7 A preliminary investigation suggests the jet was downed by a Russian air defence system Credit: AP 7 Flowers and portraits at the Consulate of Azerbaijan in the memory of victims of the Azerbaijan Airlines' crash Credit: AP 7 Sworn statement by Captain Dmitry Paladichuk, leaked by Azerbaijani media Credit: East2West 'This suggests that the military had every indication that the object was a manned aircraft,' said the Insider independent media outlet analysing the leak from media in Azerbaijan. Terrifying footage showed the Embraer aircraft nosediving before smashing into the ground in a fireball. It exploded next to the aircraft, with the shrapnel hitting passengers and cabin crew, the report said. Grozny is the capital of the region of Chechnya, controlled by a close Putin ally and warlord, Ramzan Kadyrov. The use of air defence systems aligned with reports of Ukrainian drone attacks in Chechnya on the morning of Christmas Day. It marked the second time in a decade that Russia has downed a passenger plane after the MH17 crash in in 2014. MIRACLE SURVIVORS Dozens of passengers, including children, miraculously survived the horror crash. Around 150 emergency responders rushed to the scene, battling towering flames and thick plumes of black smoke rising ominously into the sky. Meanwhile, an investigative team led by the deputy prosecutor general of Azerbaijan is working at the crash site. They found the black box of the doomed flight which revealed the haunting final words the pilot said just moments before the plane crashed on the ground. Struggling to control the plane, one of the pilots said: "I can't execute, control is lost!" The pilots reportedly tried to take the plane to three different airports but failed to land. But they lost communication with the ground crew before vanishing off the radar for 37 minutes. Footage emerged showing terrified passengers making final video calls and leaving messages as the aircraft began to plunge. Read more on the Irish Sun Distressed people on board can be seen jumping out of their seats as they try to make sense of the situation. As the oxygen masks dangled in the air, some passengers started to scream in horror, while others called their loved ones and began praying.
Saudi Gazette
a day ago
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
New evidence suggests Russian forces shot down Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243
BAKU — Russian military forces were involved in the missile strike on Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 which crashed on 25 December 2024, a new audio recording and a letter published by an Azerbaijani news website on Tuesday purport to prove. Azerbaijani news outlet Minval claims it received an 'anonymous letter ... containing testimonies, audio clips, and technical details' pointing to 'technical deficiencies in the communications equipment used at the time. Minval claims the letter includes a written statement 'allegedly signed by Captain Dmitry Sergeyevich Paladichuk, a Russian air defence officer (who) was acting under direct orders from Russia's Ministry of Defence when he authorised the missile strike.' Euronews cannot independently verify the authenticity of the claims in the Azerbaijani news outlet's report. Minval's news report on Tuesday quoted the letter claiming that 'Captain Paladichuk was stationed near Grozny on duty from 24 to 25 December. At 05:40 on the day of the incident, his unit was ordered to enter full combat readiness." "Due to poor mobile reception and a lack of functional wired communication, coordination relied heavily on unstable mobile connections," the letter added. "A potential target was detected at 08:11 and tracked using radar. Two missiles were reportedly fired at the object after Paladichuk was instructed via phone to destroy it — despite heavy fog obscuring optical confirmation.' According to the letter, 'the coordinates, speeds, and directions of the target at the time of both missile launches were provided in detail in the written explanation. The first missile is said to have missed, while the second one allegedly detonated close enough for shrapnel to strike the aircraft.' Minval also claimed that it reviewed "three voice messages" believed to support the claims made in the letter. The voices reportedly confirm that operational orders were given, two missiles were fired, and shrapnel from the explosion struck the aircraft, according to the outlet. The outlet has released one audio recording purporting to depict the sequence in which a voice in Russian gives military directions, orders a missile to be fired, followed by the sound of what appears to be a firing sequence, the same voice saying 'target missed', and allegedly ordering another missile to be fired. On the day of the tragedy, Azerbaijani government sources told Euronews that a Russian surface-to-air missile was fired at Flight 8243 during drone air activity above Grozny, the flight's destination. The same sources said that the shrapnel hit the passengers and cabin crew as the missile exploded next to the aircraft mid-flight, disabling it. The damaged aircraft was not allowed to land at any Russian airports despite the pilots' requests for an emergency landing, the same sources said, and it was ordered to fly across the Caspian Sea towards Aktau in Kazakhstan, where it crashed while attempting an emergency landing, killing 38 and injuring 29. Subsequent reports after the tragedy claimed that Flight 8243 was downed by a missile from a Russian Pantsir-S1 system. Three days after the crash, in an address to the nation, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said, "we can say with complete clarity that the plane was shot down by Russia (...) We are not saying that it was done intentionally, but it was done.' At that time, on 29 December, Aliyev stated that Baku had made three demands to Russia in connection with the crash. 'First, the Russian side must apologise to Azerbaijan. Second, it must admit its guilt. Third, punish the guilty, bring them to criminal responsibility and pay compensation to the Azerbaijani state, the injured passengers and crew members,' Aliyev outlined. Aliyev noted that the first demand was 'already fulfilled' when Russian President Vladimir Putin apologised to him on 28 December. Putin called the crash a 'tragic incident," though he stopped short of acknowledging Moscow's responsibility. The Kremlin said at the time that air defence systems were firing near Grozny, where the plane attempted to land, to deflect Ukrainian drone strikes. In the days following the tragedy, Russian military bloggers claimed that the said explosion happened over the Naursky District of Chechnya, where several Russian military units were posted at the time, including those with air defence systems, basing their conclusions on open-source data. The new claims linking the Russian military to the Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 tragedy appear at a time of a fast-moving escalation of judicial measures between Russia and Azerbaijan, as relations between the two countries reach a new low. — Euronews
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
New evidence suggests Russian forces shot down Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243
Russian military forces were involved in the missile strike on Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 which crashed on 25 December 2024, a new audio recording and a letter published by an Azerbaijani news website on Tuesday purport to prove. Azerbaijani news outlet Minval claims it received an 'anonymous letter ... containing testimonies, audio clips, and technical details' pointing to 'technical deficiencies in the communications equipment used at the time. Minval claims the letter includes a written statement 'allegedly signed by Captain Dmitry Sergeyevich Paladichuk, a Russian air defence officer (who) was acting under direct orders from Russia's Ministry of Defence when he authorised the missile strike.' Euronews cannot independently verify the authenticity of the claims in the Azerbaijani news outlet's report. Minval's news report on Tuesday quoted the letter claiming that 'Captain Paladichuk was stationed near Grozny on duty from 24 to 25 December. At 05:40 on the day of the incident, his unit was ordered to enter full combat readiness." "Due to poor mobile reception and a lack of functional wired communication, coordination relied heavily on unstable mobile connections," the letter added. "A potential target was detected at 08:11 and tracked using radar. Two missiles were reportedly fired at the object after Paladichuk was instructed via phone to destroy it — despite heavy fog obscuring optical confirmation.' According to the letter, 'the coordinates, speeds, and directions of the target at the time of both missile launches were provided in detail in the written explanation. The first missile is said to have missed, while the second one allegedly detonated close enough for shrapnel to strike the aircraft.' Minval also claimed that it reviewed "three voice messages" believed to support the claims made in the letter. The voices reportedly confirm that operational orders were given, two missiles were fired, and shrapnel from the explosion struck the aircraft, according to the outlet. The outlet has released one audio recording purporting to depict the sequence in which a voice in Russian gives military directions, orders a missile to be fired, followed by the sound of what appears to be a firing sequence, the same voice saying 'target missed', and allegedly ordering another missile to be fired. On the day of the tragedy, Azerbaijani government sources told Euronews that a Russian surface-to-air missile was fired at Flight 8243 during drone air activity above Grozny, the flight's destination. The same sources said that the shrapnel hit the passengers and cabin crew as the missile exploded next to the aircraft mid-flight, disabling it. Related Azerbaijan Airlines crash caused by foreign object damage, official report shows Russian air defence missile incident emerges as likely cause of Azerbaijan Airlines crash The damaged aircraft was not allowed to land at any Russian airports despite the pilots' requests for an emergency landing, the same sources said, and it was ordered to fly across the Caspian Sea towards Aktau in Kazakhstan, where it crashed while attempting an emergency landing, killing 38 and injuring 29. Subsequent reports after the tragedy claimed that Flight 8243 was downed by a missile from a Russian Pantsir-S1 system. Three days after the crash, in an address to the nation, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said, "we can say with complete clarity that the plane was shot down by Russia (...) We are not saying that it was done intentionally, but it was done.' At that time, on 29 December, Aliyev stated that Baku had made three demands to Russia in connection with the crash. 'First, the Russian side must apologise to Azerbaijan. Second, it must admit its guilt. Third, punish the guilty, bring them to criminal responsibility and pay compensation to the Azerbaijani state, the injured passengers and crew members,' Aliyev outlined. Aliyev noted that the first demand was 'already fulfilled' when Russian President Vladimir Putin apologised to him on 28 December. Putin called the crash a 'tragic incident," though he stopped short of acknowledging Moscow's responsibility. The Kremlin said at the time that air defence systems were firing near Grozny, where the plane attempted to land, to deflect Ukrainian drone strikes. In the days following the tragedy, Russian military bloggers claimed that the said explosion happened over the Naursky District of Chechnya, where several Russian military units were posted at the time, including those with air defence systems, basing their conclusions on open-source data. The new claims linking the Russian military to the Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 tragedy appear at a time of a fast-moving escalation of judicial measures between Russia and Azerbaijan, as relations between the two countries reach a new low.
