Iran ‘knew from start’ that missile downed plane, says Ukraine
- President cites leaked recording of conversation between air traffic controller and pilot of another plane at time aircraft was hit, killing 176 people
- Pilot is heard asking about ‘light of a missile’ before control tower tries unsuccessfully to contact Ukrainian airliner
Kiev on Monday accused Tehran of knowing from the start that an Iranian missile had brought down a Ukrainian airliner last month, after leaked recordings emerged from Iranian air traffic control.
The recordings, aired on Ukraine’s 1+1 television channel on Sunday, feature a conversation between an air traffic controller and the pilot of another plane at the time the Ukrainian airliner was hit on January 8, killing all 176 people on board.
The pilot can be heard describing “the light of a missile” on its route and then an explosion.
Iran initially denied Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 had been brought down by one of its missiles.
It later admitted that two missiles were fired at the plane by air defences on high alert, hours after Iranian armed forces fired ballistic missiles at US troops stationed in Iraq.