Australian airline Qantas said on Friday it had changed the flight path for its London to Dubai route over Ukraine to about 400 nautical miles further south several months ago.
According to Reuters, a Qantas spokesman declined to comment on the reasons for the change, which occurred amid continuing high tensions between the Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatists in the country’s eastern provinces.
Malaysia Airines flight MH17, en route to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam, was shot down in a missile attack over eastern Ukraine on Thursday, killing all 298 on board, including 28 Australians.
Although the doomed plane’s flight path was approved by aviation authorities, questions are being asked as to why civilian planes would be allowed to fly over such a war torn region where military aircraft are known to have been shot down recently.