By William Tucker
Chief Correspondent for In Homeland Security
Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur has crashed near the town of Shakhtyorsk, in Ukraine’s Donetsk province. Contact with the aircraft was lost at around 4:20 in the afternoon. Reports state that the aircraft was flying at a cruising altitude of 33,000 feet and was following a path that did not stray into restricted airspace.
Reporters have made their way to the crash site and have published several pictures and video that suggest there were no survivors among the 295 people on board. Ukrainian officials have attempted to gain access to the crash site, however, rebels from various separatist movements in the region have prevented them from entering.
Ukraine, Russia, and the separatists have all denied responsibility for downing the aircraft, however several military aircraft belonging to Ukraine were shot down in the past few weeks. If this airliner was destroyed by the rebels – early warning and civil radar systems will hash this out quite quickly. It is unlikely that the rebels deliberately targeted a civil airliner and instead mistook it for a Ukrainian military aircraft.
Rebels have antiaircraft weaponry that is capable of reaching aircraft at 30,000 feet or greater, but it is doubtful they had access to radar systems that would have allowed them to differentiate between civil or military aircraft. Needless to say, the governments representing the victims of the downed airliner will care little for such excuses.
Given the situation in Eastern Ukraine and the interests of several global and regional players, this incident will have profound implications. As this situation develops and more information becomes available, the contributors to In Homeland Security will post updates.
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