An Azerbaijan Airlines flight from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to Russia crashed, hospitalizing survivors while dozens are feared dead.

An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash on Christmas Day has prompted speculation the plane was shot down by Russia after it took a detour of hundreds of miles in the wrong direction and crash-landed with holes in the fuselage.

As investigators cite a possible bird strike for the plane crash, viral videos and social media speculation raise questions about shrapnel damage and a potential Russian defense system involvement

Various footage from cell phones shows the Embraer 190 passenger jet plummeting into the ground, killing 38 people in a fiery explosion just outside of Aktau, and the moments after as emergency crews flocked to the scene of the carnage.

The crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines flight in Kazakhstan has claimed 38 lives, with reports suggesting a possible Russian air defence missile strike. Early investigations point to missile damage after passengers reported explosions and shrapnel.

An Embraer passenger jet crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, killing 38 people, after diverting from an area of Russia that Moscow has recently defended against Ukrainian drone attacks.

Kazakh media that an oxygen tank had exploded on board the Azerbaijan Airlines plane after a bird strike before the deadly crash. They claimed that flyers had started to fall unconscious before the flight crashed.

Several passenger plane crashes have occurred worldwide this year, including a Wednesday morning Azerbaijan Airlines wreck that has left dozens feared dead.

The Embraer 190 jet, traveling from Azerbaijan's Baku to Grozny in Russia, crashed near Kazakhstan's Aktau on Wednesday after being rerouted due to fog.

An Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet crashed in the Kazakhstani city of Aktau, killing at least 38 people, authorities have said.

An international investigation has begun into how an Embraer 190 passenger jet with 67 people onboard crashed in Kazakhstan, killing 38 people but leaving 29 survivors Azerbaijan Airlines flight J28243, which had been flying from Baku to Grozny, the capital of Russia‘s Chechnya, crash-landed instead at Aktau airport.

An Embraer passenger plane flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday with 62 passengers and five crew on board, Kazakh authorities announced, saying that 27 people had survived.