KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 preliminary report shows that it was penetrated by a large number of high-energy objects from the outside.
Transport minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the damage cause by the objects resulted in a lost of structural integrity of the aircraft leading to an in-flight break up.
He said during the occurrence the aircraft was flying in am unrestricted airspace under the control of the air traffic controller (ATC) following the route and flying the altitude that was cleared by the ATC.
He also said the last transmission from the crew of MH17 was "ROMEO NOVEMBER DELTA, MALAYSIAN, one seven", adding that the last radio transmission made by the crew began at 13.19:56 hours and ended at 13.19:59 hours.
"No distress messages were received at any time by the air traffic control," he said adding that all MAS crew members on board were appropriately qualified to conduct the flight.
He said the aircraft was also in airworthy condition with no technical or operational issues.
Liow also stressed that the crash site is a criminal investigation area and it is imperative that the integrity of the area was protected and allowed to proceed with the investigation.
"The Malaysian government led by our prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak is striving to facilitate the process of moving into the crash site to locate the remains as well as personal effects that are still at the area," he said.