BREAKING NEWS - A Malaysian Boeing 777-passenger jet flight MH 17, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur and carrying 280 passengers and 15 crew onboard has crashed in the eastern side of Ukraine near the Russian border, Malaysian Airlines authorities said.

In a statement from Malaysia Airlines Facebook page, the airline confirmed it received notification from Ukrainian Air Traffic Controller that it had lost contact with flight MH17 at 1415 (GMT) at 30km from Tamak waypoint, approximately 50km from the Russia-Ukraine border.

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Flight MH17 operated on a Boeing 777 that departed Amsterdam at 12:15 p.m. (Amsterdam local time) and was estimated to arrive at Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 6:10 a.m. (Malaysia local time) the next day.

Malaysian Airlines officials said it lost contact with the plane over eastern Ukraine as it dropped off its radar signal in this location.

Ukraine Interior Minister said the civilian passenger plane was "shot down."

Anton Gerashenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian Interior Minister, said all the 295 passengers and crew on board were dead. Contacts on the ground said Ukraine officials were "concerned" about the crash.
United States military officials could not confirm if the civilian jetliner were shot down by warring groups in the region.

Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said that the Ukranian armed forces did not shoot at any airborne targets, but does not exclude the possibility of the plane getting shot down.

"We are sure that those who are guilty in this tragedy will be held responsible," Poroshenko said.

Reports said U.S. President Barack Obama is "aware" of the Malaysian jetliner crash.

Just last March, Malaysian airline flight MH37 crashed in the Indian Ocean leaving all 225 passengers and crew dead. The plane's disappearance has not yet been resolved as officials still have to find the plane's wreckage.

TagsAirline Crash, Airplane Accident, Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, Ukraine-Russia border