An Australian family who lost relatives in the MH370 flight that disappeared last March once again mourns the loss of two other family members aboard the MH17 that crashed over east Ukraine on Thursday.

George and Irene Burrows, a couple from Biloela in central Queensland State, lost their son Rodney and his wife Mary when the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared last March.

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A few months later, the couple takes another blow over the loss of step granddaughter Maree Rizk and her husband Albert, who were among the 283 passengers of the crashed MH17.

"It's just brought everyone, everything back," said Greg Burrows, Rodney's brother.

"It's just... ripped our guts again," he added.

Burrows said that he did not blame the Malaysian airline for the missile shooting.

"Nobody could predict they were going to get shot down. That was out of their hands," he said.

Maree and Albert were real estate agents who were on their way home from a month-long trip in Europe. According to RT News, the couple had tried to change their flight to avoid a nine-hour stopover.

The couple, both in their mid-50s, was an avid supporter of their son James' football team, the Sunbury Football Club. Albert was a committee member, while Maree volunteered at the canteen.

They were among the 24 Australian nationals aboard MH17.

Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is adamant that Russia take responsibility for the incident as he told its Trade Minister that Russia cannot "wash its hands" off the matter.

He stressed Russia's involvement in the matter, citing that the plane was downed over a "Russian-controlled territory" and was caused by "Russian-backed rebels" by what was most probably a "Russian-supplied weapon."

Search efforts are still underway for the lost MH370 flight.

Tagsmh370, MH17, Malaysia Airlines, Tony Abbott, Passengers aboard MH17, Passengers aboard MH370, Maree Rizk, Albert Rizk, Rodney Burrows, Mary Burrows, plane shooting