Seven Indonesians Among Passengers of Missing Malaysia Airplane
19 October 2018 20:52 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Seven Indonesians were among the 239 people aboard a Malaysia Airlines plane that went missing en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing this morning, and reportedly crashed in the Gulf of Thailand.
Malaysia Airlines confirmed in a media conference that there were 14 nationalities among the passengers, at least 152 Chinese, 38 Malaysians, seven Indonesians, six Australians, five Indians, four French and three Americans. A Chinese infant and an American infant were also on board.
Search and rescue operations were under way but the airline had begun notifying the families of those aboard, in a sign it expects the worst.
Flight MH370 disappeared at 2:40am local time, about two hours after leaving Kuala Lumpur. It had been due to arrive in Beijing at 6:30am local time.
The Boeing 777-200, on a codeshare flight with China Southern Airlines, was carrying 227 passengers, including two infants from China and the US, and 12 crew members.
"We deeply regret that we have lost all contacts with flight MH370, which departed Kuala Lumpur at 12:41 am earlier this morning bound for Beijing," Malaysia Airlines Group chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said.
"Our focus now is to work with the emergency responders and authorities and mobilise its full support," he said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all affected passengers and crew and their family members."
The airline's Kuala Lumpur-Beijing route passes roughly over the Indochinese peninsula.
In the meantime, an official at the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Judha Nugraha, said that the Indonesian Embassy is still trying to find the names of those Indonesian passengers. "We're trying to immediately find the identity of our citizens aboard the missing plane," said Judha, Saturday, March 8, 2014.
He further said that the Indonesian Embassy has tried to get more information from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
TRI ARTINING PUTRI | MASRUR (Kuala Lumpur)