Russia Admits to Azerbaijan Flight Shootdown

Thirty-eight of the 67 people on board were killed in the December 2024 incident.

Zach Vasile

Thursday, October 09, 2025 at 03:30 PM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Ryan Ewing

Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft in Georgia [Shutterstock/Libin Jose]

Key Takeaways:

Russian President Vladimir Putin formally admitted that Russia was responsible for the downing of Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 last December, which resulted in 38 fatalities.
Putin stated that Russian air defenses mistakenly shot down the commercial flight while attempting to target Ukrainian drones, attributing the incident to a "technical malfunction."
He apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, pledging compensation for victims' families and a legal assessment of those responsible, following initial strained relations due to Russia's earlier reluctance to admit fault.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday formally acknowledged his country’s responsibility for downing an Azerbaijani commercial flight in December of last year, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.

Speaking at a meeting with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, Putin said Russian air defenses shot down Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 while trying to target Ukrainian drones in Russian airspace. He blamed a “technical malfunction” for the misfire.