The Russian Union of Engineers released a report on the crash of MH 17. Below is an excerpt of their findings. You can read
the full report here for the impressive evidence they marshal to back up their conclusions.
"Between 17.17 - 17.20, the Boeing 777 was in Ukrainian airspace near the city of Donetsk at the height of 10100 m. An unidentified combat aircraft (presumably a Su-25 or MiG -29), which was a tier below, on a collision course, in the cloud layer, sharply gained altitude and suddenly appeared out of the clouds in front of the civilian aircraft and opened fire on the cockpit, firing from a 30 mm caliber cannon or smaller. The pilot of a fighter jet can do this while in "free hunting" mode (using onboard radar) or with the help of navigational guidance using airspace situation data from ground-based radar.
As a result of multiple hits from shells there was damage to the cockpit, which suddenly depressurized, resulting in instant death for the crew due to mechanical influences and decompression. The attack was sudden and lasted a fraction of a second; in such circumstances the crew could not sound any alarm as the flight had been proceeding in regular mode and no attack was expected.
Since neither the engines or hydraulic system, nor other devices required for the continuation of the flight were out of commission, the Boeing 777, running on autopilot (as is standard), continued on its horizontal flight path, perhaps gradually losing altitude."
Based on our own analysis of the situation, including the provenance of the flight, the modus operandi of Western intelligence groups and the fact that there is no hard evidence for a missile hitting the plane, we differ with the Russian Engineers only on one point; a bomb had been placed on board the flight at Schipol airport.
. . . even-handed presentation of the event is read in the 16pg. PDF avail above.
Discounting the possibility that a BUK SAM did the job we read the following on page 8:
"e) The airliner was shot down in daylight, in a highly populated area, in the presence not only of military participants following the situation in the skies, but also journalists who were armed with cameras, as well as those people who inhabited the area who were correspondingly equipped with telephones and cameras.
Here, it should also be remarked, that, not one person, but at least a military squad would be present at the launch of a BUK M1 missile and that this would make its concealment impossible.
It would correspondingly follow to say that those photographs and video‐recordings, taken in real time from different perspectives, showing the different stages of the missile’s flight, would have appeared on the internet in, pretty much real‐time (e.g. the media sensation surrounding the asteroid which hit Chelyabinsk). The inhabitants confirmed only that there were explosions and that human bodies fell from the sky amongst their houses."
That hits hard . . .