Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted on Saturday that Russia’s air defense systems were active when Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 attempted to land in Grozny, Chechnya on Wednesday.

Experts pointed to damage to the plane before it landed, suggesting it had been hit by a missile. A White House official said the US has seen "early indications" that the fatal crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane was caused by a Russian air defense system.

Russia's Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologised to Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, for a "tragic incident" which happened in Russian airspace involving an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane that crashed on Wednesday.