By P. Prem Kumar
KUALA LUMPUR
A preliminary report by Dutch authorities on the suspected downing of Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH17 indicates the aircraft was penetrated from outside by a large number of high-energy objects, Malaysia’s Transport minister announced Tuesday.
Liow Tiong Lai told a media conference that undetermined objects caused severe damage to the aircraft, resulting in a loss of structural integrity and the subsequent in-flight break up.
"No distress messages were received at any time by the air traffic control," he underlined, adding that all MAS crewmembers on board were qualified and the Boeing aircraft was in airworthy condition with no technical or operational issues.
"The Malaysian government led by our Prime Minister Najib Razak is striving to facilitate the process of moving into the crash site to locate the remains as well as personal effects that are still at the area," he said, stressing that the integrity of the crash site must be protected as a criminal investigation area.
Meanwhile, PM Razak said in a statement released Tuesday, “The report confirms that MH17 was flying in unrestricted airspace under the control of local air traffic controllers, and following a route and altitude cleared by air traffic control.”
He added that the findings even suggest high-energy objects had caused the plane to break up midair after penetration, which could strengthen suspicions that a BUK-type surface-to air-missile was launched at the plane.
He nonetheless highlighted the need for a detailed investigation to confirm the report’s finding.
The Kuala Lumpur-bound flight from Amsterdam crashed July 17 close to Ukraine’s tense border with Russia, killing all 298 people – 283 passengers and 15 crewmembers - on board, including 193 Dutch citizens.
Neither of the parties involved in armed disturbances in the area -- Ukraine or pro-Russian rebels -- have come forward to claim responsibility for the suspected attack.
www.aa.com.tr/en
