Audio captured Iran plane downing: ‘That surely is the light from a missile’

Moments after an Iranian Revolutionary Guards unit mistakenly launched a missile at a Ukrainian passenger jet, the pilot of a nearby airliner radioed air traffic controllers to report an alarming streak of light in the sky and then a midair explosion. “Flares on route, as if from a missile,” the pilot reported to the control tower in Tehran as he brought his plane in for a landing, a leaked audiotape of the exchange shows. “Should anything like this be happening there?” “We were not informed of this,” the controller said. “What does this light look like?” The reply: “That surely is the light from a missile.” When the controller tried to raise the crew of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, which had just taken off, there was no response. The Iranian pilot then reported an explosion — and sought reassurance: “Is our course O.K.?” “Yes,” the controller said. “I don’t think there will be any problem for you.” “God forbid!” the pilot responded. After a transcript of the recording was leaked to a Ukrainian news site Sunday, Iran halted its cooperation — already described as reluctant — with Ukraine’s inquiry into the downing of the Ukrainian plane. The Iranians said they had expected such evidence to be kept confidential. The missile attack killed all 176 people on the Ukrainian plane at a time of already high tensions as the United States and Iran traded attacks in the region, raising fears of further violence. Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, verified the audio recording’s authenticity and said it had been obtained by Ukrainian crash investigators. The Iranians did not dispute its authenticity.<br/>