Modi’s flight re-directed: No Indian on MH17

New Delhi: No Indian was on board the Malaysian Airline MH17 flight that was shot down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, officials said on Friday. The Civil Aviation Ministry confirmed the news.

Reports had cited the website flightradar24.com, which tracks global aircraft, as showing that Air India AI-113, a Boeing 787, was about 25 km away when MH-17 went off the radar.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s flight was among the Air India planes that were rerouted after the crash. The Ukraine airspace is traditionally one of the busiest as flights connecting Europe and Asia transit through this region. 

Most planes avoid the other flight path over the Simferopol FIR, because both Russia and Ukraine lay claim over the area and more than one air traffic control in the same airspace could have serious safety implications. 

After the crash, the Indian aviation regulator has directed Air India and Jet Airways – the only two airlines to fly to Europe and America – to avoid eastern Ukraine.

All 298 people on the Malaysia Airlines plane were killed after the aircraft was shot down over war-torn eastern Ukraine near the Russian border.

The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur could have been brought down by a ground-to-air missile, say US officials.