MH17 report 2015: How Malaysia hindered the investigation into the plane crash

INVESTIGATIONS into the downing of MH17 was as stymied by Russia as it was Malaysia, which “suspended” assistance and tried to exonerate itself.

THE Dutch-led investigation into the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was as stymied by Russia as it was Malaysia which “suspended” assistance and attempted to conduct its own probe to exonerate itself.

According to four volumes of detailed analysis of the 2014 crash that killed 298 people on-board including 38 Australians, from the outset the Malaysian Government and Malaysia Airlines actively sought to hinder the investigation and avoid scrutiny.

Indeed the Malaysians only decided to co-operate in a limited way this year but the investigation had already suffered by the delay.

As previously reported, Russia also actively sought to avoid scrutiny failing to provide raw radar data of the doomed flight’s last location and information it may have had on the Russian-made Buk missile now confirmed as having brought the Boeing aircraft down. Ukraine also declined to allow certain officials to be interviewed and also failed to provide raw flight path radar data.

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A reconstructed section of the Malaysia Airlines plane that was downed by a missile over Ukraine. Picture: AAP

“From the start of the investigation it proved to be more complicated to organise interviews with employees of the Malaysian Government and the airline in Kuala Lumpur, the same applied to obtaining the documents investigators requested (from) them,” investigators stated in a whole section on the failure of collecting international data.

It stated the flow of information did eventually begin but then “this cooperation was temporarily suspended by order of the airline’s headquarters”.

Pieces left ... the fuselage of MH17. Picture: Ella Pellegrini

They state in January this year the Malaysians did again allow access to employees and had helped with information on the cause of the crash but damage to the probe was done.

“The investigations into the flight route and the causes of the crash in particular were hindered by the fact that this information had not been available for a long time,’’ the report states.

It concludes: “In one case the lack of information caused the Dutch Safety Board to be unable to draw conclusions on a specific aspect of the investigation.

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The extent to which Malaysian intelligence services or government possessed information about the situation in the eastern part of Ukraine did not become clear in the investigation into the flight route.”

It is not stated why Malaysia, that had 43 nationals on board, would want to avoid assisting the inquiry but this year it enjoyed a 22 per cent boost in bilateral trade with Russia reaching a record AUD$4 billion and was backed by a visiting high-level Russian delegation of 40 businessmen and “officers” to the country to explore greater trade cooperation.

The report also found Malaysia Airlines complied with its “legal obligations” on conducting international flights but had not made “additional efforts” to look at the situation of dangers over eastern Ukraine during the well publicised conflict.

Originally published as MH17 report 2015: How Malaysia hindered the investigation into the plane crash