PLANE CRASH MAY BE MILITARY ACCIDENT: U.S. 
A Russian passenger plane that crashed into the Black Sea Thursday may have been destroyed by a Ukrainian missile that went astray during a military training exercise, according to U.S. officials. 
There were at least 76 people on the Tupolev 154, which was en route from Tel Aviv to the Siberian city of Novosibirsk. The plane was owned by Sibir Airlines. Most of the passengers are believed to have been Israeli. 
After the explosion, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested it may have been an act of terrorism. "A civilian aircraft crashed today and it is possible that it was the result of a terrorist act," Putin told a meeting of European justice ministers in Moscow. 
Later, U.S. officials speculated the crash may have been caused by a deadly mistake during a military training exercise in Ukraine. 
It's believed that a land-based surface-to-air missile was fired from the Crimean region of Ukraine, according to a U.S. defence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Ukraine is thought to be the only country conducting military exercises around in the Black Sea. 
But Ukraine's defence ministry has rejected the accusation, saying none of its weapons could have hit a civilian aircraft. Putin agreed with the assessment by the former Soviet republic. 
The plane crashed 175 kilometres from the Russian coastal city of Adler, according to Moscow. 
Garik Ovanisian, the pilot of a passing Armenian airliner, said the plane was overhead when it blew up. 
"I saw the explosion on the plane, which was above me at an altitude of 36,300 feet," Ovanisian told the Associated Press. "The plane fell into the sea, and there was another explosion in the sea. After that I saw a big white spot on the sea, and I had the impression that oil was burning." 
The Tu-154 is a commercial jet with three engines, capable of carrying more than 200 passengers. More than 900 of them have been built since 1968. 
Take-offs from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv were suspended for four hours but have since resumed.