http://rt.com/news/173636-buk-malaysian-plane-crash/
_______________________________________________________ Kiev deployed powerful surface-to-air missile systems to E. Ukraine ahead of the Malaysian plane crash reports _______________________________________________________ Published: Jul 17, 2014, 10:35 PM The Ukrainian military reportedly deployed a battery of Buk surface-to-air missile systems, capable of bringing down high-flying jets, to the Donetsk region the day before the Malaysian passenger plane crashed in the area. READ RT'S LIVE UPDATES ON MALAYSIAN PLANE CRASH Itar-Tass and Interfax news agencies are citing a source familiar with the issue, who said that another battery of Buk systems is currently being prepared for shipment to Donetsk region from the Ukrainian city of Kharkov. The Donetsk region remains the scene of heavy fighting between government troops and the forces of the opposition, which refused to recognize the regime change in Kiev and demand federalization. A Malaysian Airlines aircraft en route from Amsterdam to Malaysia crashed in Eastern Ukraine not far from the Russian border on Thursday. There were reportedly 280 people and 15 crew members on board the Boeing-777 plane, who reportedly all died in the crash. There were unconfirmed reports the Malaysian plane was travelling at an altitude of over 10,000 meters when it was allegedly hit by a missile. Theres no way that the self-defense forces in Donetsk Region are in possession of such complex weaponry, he stressed. Only S-300 and Buk surface-to-air missile systems are capable of hitting targets at such altitude, the source said. Buk (Blume) is a family of self-propelled, medium-range surface-to-air missile systems developed by the former USSR and Russia to engage targets at an altitude of up to 30 kilometers. Chances are high that the Malaysian plane was really downed by the Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense, Yury Karash, pilot and aviation expert, told RT. A Boeing-777 is an extremely reliable piece of machinery. Modern planes dont just crash with no reason, he said. Let us recall how a Ukrainian missile downed Russian TU-154 aircraft ten years ago. I cant completely exclude the possibility the Boeing-777 was also hit by a missile. I dont know who couldve shot it down. But I can allege that it was most likely the Ukrainian armed forces: simply because its military anti-aircraft defense, in particular are, unfortunately, unqualified. As judging by the overall state of the Ukrainian armed forces, insufficient attention has been paid to their training, Karash added. Reports in the Western media hurried to blame the self-defense forces of the Peoples Republic of Donetsk for bringing the plane down. The claims were denied by the representatives of the Donetsk Peoples Republic, saying that its the Ukrainian military, which destroyed the aircraft. We simply dont have such air defense systems. Our man-portable air defense systems have a firing range 3,000 - 4,000 meters. The Boeing was flying at a much higher altitude, Sergey Kavtaradze, special representative for the prime minister of the Donetsk Peoples Republic, explained. Kavtaradze also expressed condolences to the relatives of all of those who lost their lives in the tragedy. Source: http://rt.com/news/173636-buk-malaysian-plane-crash/
