Survivors and crew of the Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day reported hearing loud bangs before the aircraft went down in flames, fueling speculation of a Russian anti-aircraft missile strike.

The Embraer 190, en route from Azerbaijan to Russia, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, after diverting from an area where Moscow frequently deploys air defense systems against Ukrainian drones. The crash resulted in at least 38 fatalities and 29 survivors.

Passenger Subhonkul Rakhimov recounted to Reuters, from his hospital bed, that he began praying upon hearing a bang, believing the plane was about to break apart. He described the aircraft’s erratic behavior post-impact as akin to being “drunk.”

Fellow survivor Vafa Shabanova described “two explosions in the sky” preceding the crash an hour and a half later.

Another survivor, Jerova Salihat, told Azerbaijani television that something exploded near her leg.

Flight attendant Aydan Rahimli stated that oxygen masks deployed after an initial noise. She provided first aid to colleague Zulfugar Asadov before a second bang occurred.

Asadov described the noises as impacts from outside the aircraft. He sustained a severe arm laceration, refuting Kazakh officials who suggested an exploding oxygen canister was responsible. He noted a denied landing in Grozny due to fog, leading to the pilot circling before the external bangs occurred. Both pilots perished in the crash.

Asadov also told Reuters that he heard three bangs, the first originating from the left wing, just as the pilot initiated a climb.

Flight J2-8243 deviated significantly from its planned route before crashing on the opposite Caspian Sea shore.

Video footage shows the plane’s rapid descent and subsequent fiery crash, with subsequent black smoke billowing. Injured passengers were seen exiting a relatively intact section of the fuselage, revealing holes in the tail section.

White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby indicated preliminary findings suggesting the plane may have been downed by Russian air defense systems, though he declined further comment pending investigation.

Azerbaijani minister Rashad Nabiyev similarly implied a weapon strike based on expert analysis and survivor accounts.

Sources briefed on Azerbaijan’s investigation suggest the plane was hit by a Russian anti-aircraft missile, or its shrapnel.

A source familiar with the investigation told Reuters that preliminary findings point to a Russian Pantsir-S air defense system, and that electronic warfare systems disrupted communications during the approach to Grozny.

The source added that while no malicious intent is confirmed, Baku expects Russia to acknowledge the downing of the Azerbaijani aircraft.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment, deferring to the investigation’s findings.

Russia’s aviation watchdog attributed the rerouting to dense fog and a local alert in Chechnya, stating the captain was offered alternative landing locations before selecting Aktau.

Following the tragedy, Azerbaijan suspended flights to eight additional Russian airports.

The airline announced on X that flights from Baku to these eight airports were suspended starting December 28th, in addition to previously suspended flights to two other Russian airports.

’ Alex Nitzberg, Pilar Arias, Elizabeth Pritchett, the Associated Press as well as Reuters contributed to this report.