The plane took off from the northern resort island of Langkawi and was approaching Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor at the time of the crash, civil aviation authority chief Norazman Mahmud said on Thursday.
Mohamad Syahmie Mohamad Hashim, a former member of the Malaysian air force who happened to witness the lead-up to the crash, said that he saw the plane flying erratically and then heard an explosion.
He told reporters on Thursday that he rushed to the scene and saw debris from the aircraft as well as a “human body on fire”.
Transport chief Loke said earlier that the plane had been cleared to land but “veered to the right of the landing flight path” before it crashed.
In September of 1977, a Japan Airlines plane bound for Singapore crashed near the site of Thursday’s disaster. Forty-five people survived, but 34 lost their lives in the crash.
Source: CNA
