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U.S. Officials Have ‘Confidence’ Ukraine Airliner Shot Down U.S. Believes Iranian Missile Accidentally Shot Down Ukrainian Jet, Officials Say
(32 minutes later)
KYIV, Ukraine — American officials said Thursday the intelligence community had a “high level of confidence” that an Iranian missile accidentally brought down a Ukrainian passenger plane over Tehran this week. WASHINGTON — United States intelligence agencies believe that at least one Iranian missile accidentally shot down a Ukrainian jetliner over Iran this week, American officials said Thursday, a tragic coda to escalated military conflict between Washington and Tehran.
The comments from the officials came after the Iranians, through the International Civil Aviation Organization, invited the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States to assist in the investigation despite previous reports that the Americans would not be involved, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. Officials had a “high level of confidence” that the Iranians brought down the airliner by mistake, one American official said. The official said that two missiles fired from an Iranian air defense system, the SA-15, shot down the airliner.
The Ukrainian airliner, a Boeing 737-800, went down on Wednesday morning, killing at least 176 people. It had turned back toward the Tehran airport before it crashed in a huge explosion minutes after takeoff, according to an initial Iranian report released Thursday. It said that the plane, bound for Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, was in flames before it hit the ground but did not send a distress signal. The Ukrainian airliner, a Boeing 737-800, went down on Wednesday morning, killing at least 176 people. It had turned back toward the Tehran airport before it crashed in a huge explosion minutes after takeoff, according to an initial Iranian report released on Thursday. The report said that the plane, bound for Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, was in flames before it hit the ground but did not send a distress signal.
Although both the United States and Iran now appear to be backing away from a larger military confrontation, the new intelligence suggests that the loss of life from the downing of the plane was a direct result of those heightened tensions between the countries.
A security camera captured the impact — first the predawn darkness, then a series of blinding bursts of light in the distance, followed by a storm of burning debris in the foreground.A security camera captured the impact — first the predawn darkness, then a series of blinding bursts of light in the distance, followed by a storm of burning debris in the foreground.
The circumstances of the disaster raised suspicions that the airliner may have been attacked, perhaps because it was mistaken for an American warplane; the crash occurred just hours after Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles at United States targets in Iraq, with Tehran presumably bracing for possible American retaliation.
American officials have been reluctant to publicly assign blame for the downing of the aircraft, apparently to keep from inflaming tensions with Iran.
The SA-15 missile is designed to operate at medium to very low altitude and intercept both aircraft and guided weapons, according to military documents. It has a maximum range of 15.5 miles and can intercept aircraft and missiles at an altitude of up to 32,800 feet.
A mobile system, the SA-15 could have been brought out by the Iranian military to defend the airport if they believed the United States military was intending to counter attack them after the missile strike. If the Iranians believed that the U.S. was going to target their airport or other facilities with guided missiles, it could have been used to try and intercept them.
The SA-15 can track multiple targets, and seek to shoot down two at once, meaning it can fire multiple missiles nearly simultaneously, according to the military documents.
The comments from American officials came after the Iranians, through the International Civil Aviation Organization, invited the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States to assist in the investigation despite previous reports that the Americans would not be involved, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The NTSB has reached out to the State Department to determine how to proceed, the people said. Sanctions against Iran prevent Boeing from contacting the Iranians without an export license, they said.
On Wednesday, a spokesman for Iran’s armed forces, Abolfazl Shekarchi, was quoted by the Iranian news media as saying that the crash was not a result of any military action.
“This is ridiculous,” Mr. Shekarchi was quoted as saying. “Most of the passengers on this flight were our valued young Iranian men and women. Whatever we do, we do it for the protection and defense of our country and our people.”
President Trump, speaking at the White House on Thursday after an event announcing new environmental regulations, was asked about the downed airliner.
“I have my suspicions,” he said. “I don’t want to say that because other people have their suspicions also. It’s a tragic thing when I see that. It’s a tragic thing.”
He added that the crash could have been an accident.
“But somebody could have made a mistake on the other side,” Mr. Trump said. “It was flying in a pretty rough neighborhood and somebody could have made a mistake. Some people say it was mechanical. I personally don’t think that’s even a question, personally. So we’ll see what happens.”
On Thursday, Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said that investigators were following up on unconfirmed reports that fragments of a Russian-made Tor surface-to-air missile — a system used by Iran — had been found near where the plane, a Boeing 737-800, came down.On Thursday, Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said that investigators were following up on unconfirmed reports that fragments of a Russian-made Tor surface-to-air missile — a system used by Iran — had been found near where the plane, a Boeing 737-800, came down.
Ukraine was negotiating with Iran to allow the investigators to search the crash site near Tehran for possible rocket fragments, he told Censor.net, a Ukrainian news outlet.Ukraine was negotiating with Iran to allow the investigators to search the crash site near Tehran for possible rocket fragments, he told Censor.net, a Ukrainian news outlet.
Asked about the plane crash during a news conference on Thursday, President Trump said “I have my suspicions.” The possibilities of a terrorist act, a collision with an airborne object such as a drone, and an engine explosion were also being examined as possible causes of the crash, Mr. Danilov said on his Facebook page.
The plane, Mr. Trump said, was flying in a “rough neighborhood.” Ukraine brings unique experience to bear on the case: In 2014, after Russian-backed separatists took control of parts of eastern Ukraine, an antiaircraft missile that international investigators later said was Russian-made, shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 there, killing all 298 people aboard.
“Someone could have made a mistake on the other side,” he said, adding, “Not our system. It has nothing to do with us.” The SA-15 is similar to the same type of missile system that caused that crash, meaning the passengers aboard the flight out of Tehran may have faced a similar fate: silence followed by a sudden explosion that sent shrapnel and debris spiraling through the fuselage, rapidly depressurizing the cabin before the aircraft’s uncontrolled descent toward the ground.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates. Julian E. Barnes and Eric Schmitt reported from Washington, Anton Troianovski from Kyiv, Ukraine, and Natalie Kitroeff from New York. Thomas Gibbons-Neff contributed reporting from Washington and Andrew E. Kramer and Maria Varenikova from Moscow.
Anton Troianovski reported from Kyiv, Ukraine, and Natalie Kitroeff from New York. Andrew E. Kramer and Maria Varenikova also contributed reporting.