Azerbaijan’s flag carrier has announced the suspension of flights to several Russian airports, citing potential flight safety risks following a crash of one of its planes that many experts have blamed on Russian air defense fire.

The Kremlin on Friday said it would not comment on the crash of an Azerbaijani passenger plane until an inquiry was completed. This follows allegations that the jet was targeted by a Russian air defence missile.

Surviving passengers said they heard loud bangs when the flight was approaching its original destination of Grozny in Russia