KEMAMAN: Wan Amran Wan Hussin, 50, the pilot of the Malaysia Airlines flight that crashed in Ukraine yesterday, had stated his intention to perform the Haj later this year, according to his nephew Amaluddin Noorshah, 48.
He had expressed the intention to his elder sister, Wan Aini, when he returned to his village in Kota Lama Kiri, Kuala Kangsar, Perak, to break fast with relatives last week, Amaluddin said.
“I felt a difference in the tone of his voice when he said that,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
Amaluddin said he did not realise that that was the last time he would meet his uncle.
“I learnt from a family WhatsApp network about what happened. All of us felt a weakness spread through our bodies when we found out that Wan Amran was the pilot of that ill-fated flight,” he said.
The MAS flight, MH17, was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it went down in Ukraine. It was carrying 280 passengers and 15 crew.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said early today that Ukrainian authorities believe that the Boeing 777 was shot down.
Amaluddin said his uncle had been piloting Boeing aircraft for more than 20 years.
“He was very close to his siblings and contributed much to charity. His wife and two sons live in Shah Alam,” he said.
Amaluddin said he had been close to his uncle since his childhood days. –BERNAMA
