The tragedy of JL715 was Malaysia’s first fatal flight crash which occurred in September 1977. The flight operated by the Japan Airlines had a total of 69 passengers and 10 crews on board. The pilot miscalculated the runway and ended up crashing into the side of a 300 feet hill, causing 34 fatalities. The remaining 45 survivors consisted of 26 passengers and 8 crew members.
About two months later, in December 1977, Malaysia Airlines suffered another first fatal crash. It was only five years after the establishment of the first airline company in the country. The MH653 flight was scheduled to fly from Penang to Kuala Lumpur, but was hijacked mid-flight. The hijacker shot both pilots and himself. Consequently, the plane crashed causing 100 fatalities. The case remains unsolved. However, Kuala Lumpur airport officials claimed that the pilots radioed in, informing that the plane was hijacked by the members of Japanese Red Army.
In March 2014, the MH370 tragedy occurred. It remains as one of the world’s biggest aviation mysteries. MH370 was scheduled to fly from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, but disappeared mid-flight. 227 passengers with 12 crew members were on-board.
Less than a year later, in July 2014, Malaysia Airlines suffered another aircraft loss. This time, it was the MH17 flight. The aircraft was suspected to be shot down by Russian separatist near the Ukranian border using a Buk missile system.
Source: Malaysia Indicator
