After an Azerbaijan Airlines jet crashed in Kazakhstan, speculation mounted about why the plane went down and whether possible Russian air defense action may have played a role.

An Azerbaijani airliner carrying 67 people crashed in southwestern Kazakhstan on Wednesday, killing at least 38 who were on board, according to Kazakh authorities. In a sprawling rescue operation, 29 survivors including two children were pulled from the wreckage near the city of Aktau,

Authorities in Kazakhstan are investigating the cause of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in the country, which killed 38 people and injured 29 others on Christmas Day. The big picture: Flight J2-8243 was diverted while en route from Baku,