July 17, 2014
Numerous media and news outlets are reporting that a Malaysia Airlines flight traveling from Amsterdam to Malaysia has crashed in eastern Ukraine, near their border with Russia. Malaysia Airlines confirmed earlier today that they lost contact with Flight 17 while it was flying over Ukrainian airspace, according to CNN. The Boeing 777 jet was possibly carrying up to 280 passengers as well as 15 crew members, CNN reported. At this hour, multiple media outlets are reporting that the plane was shot down while on a “common” route between Kuala Lumpur and the Netherlands, CNN reported. An official in the Ukrainian Interior Ministry said on Facebook that the plane was struck by a missile from a surface-to-air system, according to The Daily Beast.
This marks the second time this year that Malaysia Airlines has faced a tragedy pertaining to one of its flights, as Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 notoriously disappeared on March 8th, according to CNN. Flight 370 had 239 passengers on board, and according to all credible intelligence most likely flew into the southern Indian Ocean on autopilot with an unresponsive crew, CNN reported.