TEMPO.CO, Brussels - Following the crash of Malaysia Airline flight MH17 in Ukraine, which was suspected to be shot down by a stray missile, the European Airspace Coordinator said that the plane was flying at 33,000 feet, approximately 1000 meters from the closed airspace of Ukraine.
"According to the report, the plane was flying at Flight Level 330 [approximately 10,000 meters or 33,000 feet] when it disappeared from the radar," said the agency.
Ukraine authorities claimed that the route had been closed and that the safe flight altitude is supposed to be at Level 320 (32,000 feet). However, other reports said that the airspace was open when MH17 took flight.
After the incident, all eastern Ukraine’s airspace has been closed off. British Airways, KLM, Virgin Atlantic, Air France, Turkish Airlines, Alitalia, Delta and Lufthansa are among those who chose to change its flight course.
Malaysian Airlines Officer Huib Gorter, announced that 295 people (the total number of passengers and crew) of flight MH17 were killed in the incident.
RINDU P. HESTYA | REUTERS