Malaysian flight with 239 people aboard disappears

Kuala Lumpur, March 8: A Malaysian passenger plane carrying 239 people has lost contact with air traffic control after leaving Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur, the carrier said Saturday.

The B777-200 aircraft departed Kuala Lumpur at 00:41 a.m. Saturday. It was expected to land in Beijing at 6:30 a.m., Xinhua reported.

Malaysia Airlines said it was working with the authorities who have dispatched search and rescue team to locate the plane.

The plane disappeared from radar while it was in Vietnamese sky

Flight MH 370, operating a Boeing B777-200 aircraft left Kuala Lumpur at 12.21 am on Friday and it was expected to land in the Chinese capital at 6.30am the same day.

But, according to the airline, the flight had lost contact with Malaysian air traffic controllers at 2.40am, just over two hours into the flight.

China's CCTV said 160 Chinese nationals were onboard the flight, according to microblogging website Weibo, said a Reuters report.

Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported that the plane disappeared from radar while it was in Vietnamese sky.

Chinese media reported that so far the plane hasn't crached into any water body in the country. Last summer, an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 crash landed in San Francisco, killing three passengers.

Oneindia News
(With IANS inputs)