Failures at many levels led to Iran's shooting down of plane: Experts

Part of the wreckage of the Ukraine International Airlines plane that crashed outside Teheran last Wednesday. PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Part of the wreckage of the Ukraine International Airlines plane that crashed outside Teheran last Wednesday.PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
  • Published
    Jan 14, 2020, 5:00 am SGT
New: Gift this subscriber-only story to your friends and family

WASHINGTON • Details about why Iran air defence forces mistook a Ukrainian airliner for a cruise missile remain murky, but one thing is clear: Safeguards for operating surface-to-air missiles are supposed to prevent that kind of mistaken identity, and all of them failed.

The error, which killed all 176 people aboard the plane last Wednesday, is probably the result of multiple layers of failure, said the Teal Group's senior analyst for missile systems Steven Zaloga.

Please or to continue reading the full article.

Get unlimited access to all stories at $0.99/month

  • Latest headlines and exclusive stories
  • In-depth analyses and award-winning multimedia content
  • Get access to all with our no-contract promotional package at only $0.99/month for the first 3 months*
Subscribe now

*Terms and conditions apply.

Join ST's Telegram channel here and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on January 14, 2020, with the headline 'Failures at many levels led to Iran's shooting down of plane: Experts'. Subscribe
Topics: