SPECULATION INTENSIFIES: Was The Ukraine Plane Brought Down By A Missile?

Speculation has intensified around the theory that it was indeed an Iranian missile that accidentally shot down a Ukrainian jetliner over Iran this week, killing everyone aboard.

As we reported earlier this week the Ukrainian Boeing 737-800 aircraft carrying 167 people crashed just after take-off from Imam Khomeini Airport, in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

The Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 was bound for the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

According to a tweet from Ukrainian foreign minister Vadym Prystaiko, 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, 4 Afghans, 3 Germans, and 3 British nationals died onboard.

Originally the crash was suspected to have been caused by mechanical issues but as the story unfolds civil aviation professionals are favouring the idea that a missile bringing down the plane.

The plane crashed in the Tehran suburb of Parand just hours after Iran launched a missile strike on air bases in Iraq where US troops are stationed.

The US Federal Aviation Administration announced a ban on American civilian planes flying over Iran, Iraq and the Persian Gulf shortly before the incident.

The secretary of Ukraine’s national security council, Oleksiy Danylov, has now told Ukrainian media that investigators want to search for the possible debris of a missile at the crash site.

Iran’s Red Crescent at the scene of the crash

US President Donald Trump supports the theory, saying the plane was “was flying in a pretty rough neighbourhood and somebody could have made a mistake”.

“I have a feeling something very terrible happened, very devastating,” he said.

Ukraine International Airlines said the plane involved in the crash was built in 2016 and had been serviced just two days before it crashed.

Some commercial airlines have rerouted flights crossing the Middle East to avoid possible danger amid escalating tensions between the United States and Iran.

This includes Qantas which is altering its London to Perth, Australia, routes to avoid Iran and Iraq airspace until further notice.

Malaysia Airlines said that “due to recent events,” its planes would avoid Iranian airspace, as did Singapore Airlines and Vietnam Airlines.

Meanwhie, The US Federal Aviation Administration said it was barring American pilots and carriers from flying in areas of Iraqi, Iranian and some Persian Gulf airspace. The agency warned of the “potential for miscalculation or misidentification” for civilian aircraft amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran.