UKRAINE Area of detail Field where photos below were taken Grabovo Rozsypne Pelahiivka

Analysis: The shrapnel came from outside the plane. Mr. Foster said the contour of the aluminum and the blistering of the paint around many of the holes indicate that small pieces of high-velocity shrapnel entered the aircraft externally. Mr. Foster said the two most likely causes were an engine explosion or an exploding missile. Noah Sneider and Sabrina Tavernise/The New York Times

Many of the holes are relatively small ... Mr. Foster said “most of the smaller holes appear to have been caused by a high-velocity projectile, as opposed to shearing or tearing caused by the forceful separation of the panel from the airframe.” He said the SA-11 family of missiles was designed to destroy fast-moving military aircraft at high elevations. Rather than striking an aircraft directly, the missiles intercept the targeted aircraft and then explode near it, creating a cloud of shrapnel. Noah Sneider and Sabrina Tavernise/The New York Times MISSILE An SA-11 missile carries about 46 pounds of explosives. It detonates about 100 to 300 feet away from the target. Shrapnel The detonation shatters the warhead and creates a shrapnel cloud that strikes the aircraft many times with the intent of damaging critical parts of the plane like the engines and wing flaps.