A Boeing B777-200 aircraft from Malaysia heading to Beijing has gone missing. Flight number MH370 is reported to have disappeared on Friday 18.40 GMT and was supposed to Land at Beijing at 22.30 GMT. The plane was carrying 227 adult passengers, 2 children and 12 crew members. 152 of them were Chinese, 38 Malaysians, 12 Indonesians and 6 Australians. The plane is reported to have gone off radar South of Vietnam. The CEO of Malaysian airways Mr. Ahmad Jauhari yahya said that they have contacted the families of the missing passengers and that the airline is doing everything to find the missing plane.
Helicopters had been sent on site immediately but they were not able to find anything. The pilot flying the plane is said to be qualified and experienced. Capt. Zaharie Ahmad joined the airline in 1981. The airline also reported that the plane was flying at an altitude of 10,700 M and the crew hadn’t reported of any problem.
Reports indicate that two passengers an Italian and an Australian listed to have been on the plane were actually not on board. They claimed to have lost their passports in Thailand. Najib Razak, Malaysia’s prime minister dismissed rumors that an act of terror led to the disappearance of the flight. He urged the public not to conclude at this early stage and that the government was looking to all possibilities.
Two neighboring countries china and Philippines have dispatched rescue ships, air patrols and navy patrol ships to aid in the search of the plane. Singapore and Vietnam are reported to have also shown solidarity to the Asian country. A Vietnamese Plane searching through the area has reported presence of oil slicks, though it does not confirm it is linked to the missing flight. Families and friends of the missing passengers have flocked both airports in search of answers and information regarding the missing flight.