CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When a Malaysia Airlines jet carrying 298 people crashed in Ukraine Thursday morning, former FBI assistant director Chris Swecker immediately started thinking about why a plane would be flying over a troubled area.
"Two planes have been shot down in the last couple of days," Swecker said. "I'm very surprised to see commercial airlines flying over that area."
He also started thinking about who could have caused the destruction.
"It's a conflict zone. It's a high probability that the separatists shot that plane down thinking it was something else," Swecker said.
Right now it's not clear who is responsible. President Barack Obama has offered the United States' help with the investigation.
"People will be looking for answers," Swecker said. "Everyone wants to know what happened. It's a volatile region."
A local politics expert told Channel 9 there may have been politics in play.
"There's incentives to engage in these kinds of violent attacks against civilians and then blame it on the other side," said Dr. Justin Conrad, assistant professor of political science at University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
Charlotte passengers still flying but with heavy hearts