An Azerbaijani minister suggested Friday that an airliner that crashed this week was hit by a weapon, citing expert analysis and survivor testimony indicating that the plane was struck from the outside.

Based on the opinion of experts and on the words of eyewitnesses, it can be concluded that there was external interference,” Azerbaijani’s Transport Minis

Sources told Reuters the plane had been hit by Russian fire. "It was as if it was drunk - not the same plane anymore," one passenger recalled.

The Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed experienced "external physical and technical interference," the airline says.

A passenger jet operated by Azerbaijan Airlines crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, after diverting from an area of southern Russia where Moscow has repeatedly used air defence systems against Ukrainian attack drones.

The statement is the closest officials have come to confirming mounting suspicions that the plane was downed by a Russian air-defense system.