U.S. Officials Analyzing Radar, Satellite Data

There seems to be a growing body of evidence that the Ukrainian airliner that went down in Tehran the day that Iran fired a volley of missiles at U.S. and coalition position in Iraq was mistakenly shot down by an Iranian missile.

CNN reports that electronic data collected by the U.S. military and intelligence sources indicates that the plane was targeted by an Iranian surface to air missile. European security officials say they believe that such reports are "credible".

The plane departed from Tehran just hours after the Iranian attack on selected targets in Iraq. President Trump said during a news conference at the White House that he did not want to say definitively that the plane had been shot down by what was essentially friendly fire, but "somebody could have made a mistake on the other side ... not our system. It has nothing to do with us."

The theory is that Iranian missile crews targeted the airliner when it appeared on their radar and mistook it for an enemy aircraft or missile.

Iran has refused to release the plane's cockpit voice or data recorders to Boeing or any independent entity for analysis.

Ali Abedzadeh, the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Authority, disputed the U.S. allegation. "If a rocket or missile hits a plane, it will free fall." Abedzadeh said. "How can a plane be hit by rocket or missile" and then the pilot "try to turn back to the airport?"

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report