Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17

9M-MRD, the aircraft involved in the incident, at Rome Fiumicino Airport in October 2011
Incident summary
Date	17 July 2014
Summary	Suspected of having been shot down by aBuk surface-to-air missile;[1][2][3] exact cause is still under investigation[4]
Site	Near Hrabove,Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine 48°7′56″N 38°39′19″E
Passengers	283
Crew	15
Fatalities	298 (all)
Survivors	0
Aircraft type	Boeing 777-200ER
Operator	Malaysia Airlines
Registration	9M-MRD
Flight origin	Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
Destination	Kuala Lumpur International Airport

Malaysia Airlines Flight 17(MH17/MAS17)^[a] was a scheduled international passenger flight fromAmsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that crashed on 17 July 2014. It is believed to have been shot down with a Buksurface-to-air missile.^[6] The aircraft went down near Hrabove in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, about 40 km (25 mi) from Ukraine–Russia border.^[7] All 283 passengers and 15 crew members on board the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER airliner were killed.^[8][9][10] The crash occurred in the conflict zone of the ongoing Donbass insurgency.

A Ukrainian Interior Ministry official, Anton Gerashchenko, said a Bukmissile hit the aircraft at an altitude of 10,000 m (33,000 ft).^[9] Ukrainian security services said they intercepted two phone conversations in which pro-Russian separatists discuss having just shot down a civilian plane with Russian intelligence officers. On 19 July, Vitaly Nayda, the chief of counter intelligence department of SBU, told a news conference: "We have compelling evidence that this terrorist act was committed with the help of the Russian Federation. We know clearly that the crew of this system were Russian citizens."^{[7][11][12][12]}

The separatists denied the recorded talks were related to the crash of MAS17.^[13] Alleged separatist conversations with Russian intelligence agents were also intercepted, in which rebels reportedly express satisfaction that they are in possession of a Buk missile system.^[14] U.S. President Barack Obama, citing U.S. intelligence officials, said the plane was shot down by a missile and that there was "credible evidence" it was fired from a location held by pro-Russian rebels.^[2][15][16]

The crash was the airline's second major incident of the year. Flight 370(9M-MRO) disappeared on 8 March en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. With 298 deaths, MH17 is the deadliest-ever Boeing 777 hull loss and the deadliest incident in Malaysia Airlines' history.^[17]