Malaysian Airlines MH370 Officially Declared An Accident With No Survivors A Day After Indonesia Ends AirAsia Recovery

Tags: MH370; Malaysian Airlines; Beijing

BY jakewriter Jan 30, 2015 10:17 PM EST

The Malaysian government's Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) said Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370 was an accident according to published reports.

"We officially declare Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 an accident ... and that all 239 of the passengers and crew on board MH370 are presumed to have lost their lives," DCA director-general Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said in a statement.

The Malaysian Airlines MH370, a Boeing 777, with 239 persons on board disappeared after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on its way to Beijing. The incidence occurred almost a year ago on March 8th. The move to declare the flight missing ensures compensation to relatives of those on board the MH370 en route to Beijing. However, some family members of those on the ill-fated flight say they are not looking for compensation, but a search to find out what happened to the MH370.

The MH370's mysterious disappearance is the first among three planes that lost all passengers last year. A second Malaysian Airlines aircraft, MH17 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 298 passengers and crew was shot down in a war zone between Russia and Ukraine on July 17, worsening the plight of Malaysian Airlines.

The AirAsia QZ 8501's disappearance on Dec. 28 capped the worst year for Malaysia linked air disasters after its engine stalled after going full throttle from 32,000 ft to 38,000 ft. before spiraling into the Java Sea. Bad weather was reportedly a factor in the AirAsia crash.

AirAsia's Airbus 320 jet crash was declared an accident by Indonesia 30 days after the QZ 8501 disappeared from radar screens, suggesting another MH370 type vanishing in air space before debris and bodies were found floating in the Java Sea.

Mr. Rahman said that the decision to declare MH370 an accident was in line with the "standards of International Civil Aviation." The rule allows the ailing carrier to proceed with compensation packages to "next of kin" immediately.