"As a mother, I accept the tragic death of my son as fate and Allah's will," Fatimah Ibrahim, the mother of the Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH17 co-pilot Muhammad Firdaus Abdul Rahim said.
Nevertheless, Fatimah, 64, a retiree, said Muhammad Firdaus' tragic demise was truly felt by the whole family as he was the youngest of five siblings and used to be pampered by the family.
"A week before his flight to Amsterdam, he came to see me, but nothing seemed peculiar, everything was normal.
"He even asked me to prepare his favourite dishes of 'daging dinding' and 'ayam masak merah'," she told reporters here today.
What hurts the most, she said was the fact they did not even get to see his remains for the last time.
"His brother and sister even went to Amsterdam, but they were not given the chance to see his remains," Fatimah said.
Meanwhile, Muhammad Firdaus' cousin, Mohd Mizan Mohd Mahidin, 32, who is a MAS pilot, said he was still shocked and saddened by the tragedy that had befallen his 27-year-old cousin.
"As a cousin and a colleague, I'm deeply saddened. We, as pilots, we have been trained to handle many situations, but not this kind of situation, this is devastating and really unacceptable.
"My heart goes out to his mother, his wife and his unborn child. I really hope his wife can hold herself together," Mohd Mizan said.
It is learnt that Muhammad Firdaus' wife Nazareth Saab, 27, who is a nurse at Hospital University Kebangsaan Malaysia, is now three months pregnant with their first child.
Muhammad Firdaus was one of the nine victims of the MH17 tragedy whose remains were flown home today.
After the repatriation ceremony at the Bunga Raya Complex at the KL International Airport, his remains were taken to his hometown on the Eurocopter EC 725 which landed at 10.15 am on the field in Jalan Speedy here.
Sultan of Perak Sultan Nazrin Shah and Raja Permaisuri Perak Tuanku Zara Salim were present at the field to pay their last respects for the co-pilot.
Also present were Menteri Besar Perak Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir and his wife, Datin Seri Saripah Zulkifli, state executive council members and Muhammad Firdaus' family and relatives.
The remains of Muhammad Firdaus were then taken to Al-Naim Mosque in Taman Seri Setia for prayer before being laid to rest at the Hilir Perak Muslim cemetery in Jalan Sultan at noon.
Flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine as it was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 283 passengers and 15 crew on board on July 17.
The Boeing 777-200 aircraft was believed to have been shot down over the troubled country, although no party had claimed responsibility.
Bernama
Tue Sep 02 2014
Retiree Fatimah Ahmad said the tragic demise was truly felt by the whole family as he was the youngest of five siblings and used to be pampered by the family. - Bernama Photo
Lelaki bertindak bakar diri di luar mahkamah New York
Max Azzarello yang berasal dari St. Augustine, Florida, dilaporkan telah diselamatkan dan berada dalam keadaan kritikal.
[TERKINI] Ketua Polis Negara paling lama meninggal dunia
Bekas Ketua Polis Negara, Tun Mohamed Hanif Omar, meninggal dunia pada usia 85 tahun di kediamannya di Shah Alam pada 2.15 pagi Sabtu.
Pasangan suami isteri tidak sangka dua kali tolak tawaran, masih ada rezeki tunai haji tahun ini
Selepas surat tawaran berada di dalam tangan, dia dan isteri giat membuat persiapan demi memastikan mereka memperoleh haji yang mabrur.
Lelaki bertindak bakar diri di luar Mahkamah New York
Seorang lelaki bertindak membakar dirinya di luar mahkamah New York di mana perbicaraan bagi kes bekas presiden Amerika syarikat Donald Trump sedang berjalan
Perlu isyhtihar jika bawa lebih S$20,000
: Semua pengembara yang memasuki atau meninggalkan Singapura membawa mata wang fizikal dan instrumen boleh niaga (CBNI) dengan nilai lebih 20 Ribu Dolar Singapura atau bersamaan dalam mata wang asing.
Pengisytiharan CBNI ini supaya membantu usaha Singapura membanteras aktiviti jenayah seperti pengubahan wang haram dan Keperluan sedemikian adalah kebiasaan di banyak negara.
Pengisytiharan CBNI ini supaya membantu usaha Singapura membanteras aktiviti jenayah seperti pengubahan wang haram dan Keperluan sedemikian adalah kebiasaan di banyak negara.
G7 tekad, untuk redakan perang di Asia Barat, Ukraine-Rusia
Isu peperangan di Ukraine dan Asia Barat mendominasi mesyuarat Menteri Luar Kumpulan G7,terdiri daripada Amerika Syarikat, Itali, Kanada, Perancis, Jerman, Jepun dan Britain.
Sidang kemuncak menteri luar itu berakhir sejurus selepas serangan Israel ke atas Iran dikatakan sebagai tindakan balas terhadap serangan dron dan peluru berpandu Iran baru-baru ini ke atas Israel.
Sidang kemuncak menteri luar itu berakhir sejurus selepas serangan Israel ke atas Iran dikatakan sebagai tindakan balas terhadap serangan dron dan peluru berpandu Iran baru-baru ini ke atas Israel.
Lari fokus, abai kesihatan antara masalah utama jemaah
Beberapa masalah jemaah haji Malaysia, antaranya terlalu tumpukan kepada ibadat sunat dan abai soal kesihatan dikumpul hasil pemerhatian bekas petugas Tabung Haji (TH) sepanjang lebih 30 tahun berkhidmat. Namun, semua masalah ditangani secara bijak oleh petugas TH yang menggalas tanggungjawab.
Bekas Ketua Polis Negara Tun Hanif Omar meninggal dunia
Allahyarham difahamkan menghembuskan nafas terakhir pada jam 2.15 pagi tadi.
Kes Audrey Fang: Penyiasat temukan bukti dalam bilik hotel suspek
Peguam keluarga mangsa meminta warga Singapura itu yang tidak dinamakan di hantar ke penjara dahulu sebelum perbicaraan.
Kursus Perdana Haji secara berperingkat di seluruh negara bermula hari ini sehingga 5 Mei
TH anjur Kursus Perdana Haji secara berperingkat di seluruh negara bermula hari ini di Masjid WIlayah Persekutuan sehingga 5 Mei ini, di mana ia merupakan kursus terakhir bagi bakal jemaah haji sebagai platform ulang kaji dan pelengkap kepada kursus-kursus sebelum ini.