Handling MH370 incident a painful experience: Liow

Putra Jaya: Handling the incident involving the Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370 which vanished on March 8 last year, has been a painful experience for Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai to bear."My feeling is that it is painful," said Liow who took over helming the task midway from Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein after being appointed to the ministerial post on June 25, last year.

Hishammuddin had provisionally held the transport portfolio when the post was left vacant after the 13th General Election.

Liow was soaked with emotion even on the first day of the incident when he met the grieving next-of-kin of those who were onboard the doomed aircraft, at Anjung Tinjau in the KL International Airport (KLIA), Sepang on March 8.

"I was there (at Anjung Tinjau) on the first day as President of MCA and showed my concern over the issue.

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"Even on the first day, it was very painful to know that one plane had disappeared and I can understand the feelings of the next-of-kin," he said here Friday, when asked on his personal experience handling the incident as his media briefing in conjunction with the first anniversary of the missing plane almost concluded.

Flight MH370, on which were 227 passengers and 12 crew went missing from the radar screen while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, about an hour after it departed from the KL International Airport on March 8. It was scheduled to arrive in Beijing at 6.30am on the same day.

Liow recalled his meeting with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on the first day he was appointed transport minister.

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"The first thing he told me was my first task was to help the country find MH370, use whatever contacts and resources I have, and go to China, Australia and get international help," he said recalling the mandate.

"I flew to China, went to Australia, later to the United States and attended the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) council meeting and ASEAN Transport Ministers Meeting. We also got world support for us to find MH370," he said, while pledging to continue to work hard on the issue. – Bernama

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