An Azerbaijani minister suggested Friday that an airliner that crashed this week was hit by a weapon, citing expert analysis and survivor testimony indicating that the plane was struck from the outside.

Sources told Reuters the plane had been hit by Russian fire. "It was as if it was drunk - not the same plane anymore," one passenger recalled.

The Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed experienced "external physical and technical interference," the airline says.

A total of 38 passengers were killed, while 29 survived on Wednesday after an Azerbaijan Airlines flight from Baku to Grozny crashed as it attempted to make an emergency landing near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan.

A passenger jet operated by Azerbaijan Airlines crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, after diverting from an area of southern Russia where Moscow has repeatedly used air defence systems against Ukrainian attack drones.

National flags were lowered across Azerbaijan, traffic across the country stopped at noon, and signals were sounded from ships and trains as the country observed a nationwide moment of silence.