2014 was a terrible year for aviation, and particularly for Malaysia Airlines with two tragic incidents. Four months after the mysterious disappearance of MH370, Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine with 298 passengers and crew onboard. There were no survivors. Now, almost five years later, four people are being charged with murder.
What Happened To MH17
On July 17, 2014, MH17 bound for Kuala Lumpur was approaching the border between Russian and Ukraine after departing from Amsterdam. Like MH 370, the flight was operated by a Boeing 777-200.
At the time, Ukraine was engulfed in a civil war, with one side being backed by pro-Russian rebels. It is believed that it was these rebels that shot down MH17, apparently mistaking the plane for a Ukrainian one.
Suspects Charged In The Incident
Investigators from the affected countries — Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine — formally charged four suspects involved with the missile strike. It is the first time anyone has been charged in relation to the incident.
However, because the suspects are in Russia, it is unlikely that they will even answer to the charges. There’s a whole lot more to the background as to how Russia is involved in all of this, and those details can be found in the New York Times article.
Malaysia Airlines 777 (now retired)
Malaysia Airlines retired the MH17 flight number and eventually ended its Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur route in 2016. And while it was not the aircraft’s fault, the airline also retired its Boeing 777s to clean the slate so to speak.
The two separate incidents for Malaysia Airlines in 2014 created tremendous difficulty for the airline as they still are trying to bounce back financially and instill confidence that they are an airline safe enough to fly (they are).
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