European aviation authority confirms MH17 flew at safe level

Relatives of passengers onboard the downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 arrive at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang July 18, 2014. ― Reuters pic



KUALA LUMPUR, July 18 — Malaysia Airlines (MAS) MH17 was cruising above restricted altitude over Ukraine when it was brought down by what is believed to be an air defence missile, European air traffic controllers have confirmed.


As questions continue to be raised over the plane’s presence in the area being contested by Ukrainian loyalists and pro-Russian separatists, EuroControl said its data showed that MH17 did not fall below an altitude closed off to civilian airliners.

“According to our information, the aircraft was flying at Flight Level 330 (approximately 10,000 metres/33,000 feet) when it disappeared from the radar.

“This route had been closed by the Ukrainian authorities from ground to flight level 320 but was open at the level at which the aircraft was flying,” EuroControl said on its website.

The airspace is not under any restriction by any aviation and transport authorities beyond that declared by Ukraine, which is currently locked in a civil war.

But the pilots’ decision to skim closely to the prohibited air zone is prompting questions whether this may have contributed to what is believed to be a case of mistaken identity.


MAS earlier maintained that the plane’s flight path over the restive area had been green-lighted by International Civil Aviation Organisation and International Air Transportation Association.

Allegations continue to linger that MH17 was flying over the area of Ukraine in a bid to save fuel. MAS has booked billions of ringgit in losses in recent years owing to increased competition and an earlier air tragedy this year.

MH17 was believed to have been shot down over eastern Ukraine by pro-Russian militants yesterday, killing all 298 people aboard, a Ukrainian interior ministry official said.

MAS said air traffic controllers lost contact with MH17 as it flew over eastern Ukraine towards the Russian border, bound for Asia with 283 passengers and 15 crew aboard.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak earlier called the incident as a “tragic day in a tragic year for Malaysians”, in reference to the loss of another MAS plane, the still-missing MH370, that disappeared on March 8 with 239 on board.