The Azerbaijan Airlines plane flew hundreds of miles off its scheduled route from Baku to Grozny, and crashed on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea. Russia's aviation watchdog said a bird strike might have been the cause.

Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer 190 was en route from Baku to the Russian city of Grozny when it was diverted for reasons yet unclear and crashed while making an attempt to land in Aktau in Kazakhstan.

Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer SA 190 aircraft was damaged by Russian air defense systems near Grozny before it crashed in Kazakhstan during an attempted emergency landing, according to Azerbaijan government-backed Caliber news website.

Increasing analysis suggests Russian air defenses might have downed Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243, which crashed in a ball of fire near Aktau,Kazakhstan on Wednesday morning, killing 38 of 67 passengers and crew.

Thirty eight people were killed and dozens survived a plane crash in Kazakhstan while traveling to southern Russia, according to local officials, as speculation swirls online that Russia could somehow have been responsible for the crash.

Azerbaijan is observing a nationwide day of mourning for the victims of the air crash that killed 38 people and left all 29 survivors injured as speculation mounted about a possible cause of the crash that remained unknown.