This is the aircraft that was shot down over the disputed area in the Ukraine. Pictured here in happier times as it departed Paris in 2010. This aircraft entered service on July 17, 1997, and was shot down exactly 17 years later on July 17, 2014. Photo: Jeroen Stroes – OPShots Contributor.
Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200, registration 9M-MRD performing flight MH-17/KL-4103 from Amsterdam Netherlands to Kuala Lumpur Malaysia with 283 passengers and 15 crew, was enroute at FL330 about 20nm northeast of Donetsk Ukraine when the transponder data became unreliable at 13:18Z position N48.28 E38.08 and was lost at FL330 at 13:20Z. The aircraft came down near the villages of Shakhtarsk and Hrabove Ukraine about 20nm from the last transponder position and 20nm from the Ukrainian/Russian border, the ELT of the aircraft was recorded at position N48.1230 E38.5258.Videos circulating in the Internet and media claiming to show the stricken MH-17 coming down with a raging fire at the right hand wing are in fact videos of the shoot down of an Antonov AN-30 in Slavyansk on Jun 6th 2014.Recovery of victimsOn Jul 20th 2014 an agreement reached between separatists and Ukrainian Recovery Services permitted the recovery of 196 of the 298 bodies so far. According to Ukrainian government Ukrainian recovery services and international observers are permitted to recover the bodies and take them to a safe place. According to Associated Press the bodies have been loaded onto trains headed to a separatist held city. Ukrainian Donetsk Emergency Ministry confirmed 196 bodies have been recovered and are going to be transferred to Donestsk.On Jul 20th 2014 the OSCE confirmed bodies have been brought to the rail station of Torez where three refriggerated rail cars are used to store the victims until international experts arrive. The separatists claim 167 bodies have been brought to Torez, the OSCE has not been able to verify this however.On Jul 21st 2014 the Ukrainian government said, 272 bodies have been recovered so far. Dutch investigators have reached Torez to begin identifying the bodies. The Ukrainian government proposed that the Netherlands should lead the investigation. There are tough negotiations ongoing to permit the trains carrying the bodies to leave Eastern Ukraine, so that the bodies can be identified and returned to their families.
via Crash: Malaysia B772 near Donetsk on Jul 17th 2014, aircraft was shot down.
