Kiwi lucky he didn't catch doomed flight
A New Zealander says he's lucky to be alive after he didn't catch the Malaysian airliner that crashed in Ukraine, killing all on board, in a suspected missile attack.
Kiwi sailor Mike Bullot competed in a regatta in Germany on June 25 and had a reservation on the Malaysia Airlines flight that crashed in rebel-held east Ukraine overnight.
The Boeing 777 travelling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was carrying 298 people.
Officials confirmed on Friday that 28 Australians were among the passengers, with the majority of the people from the Netherlands.
Not all nationalities have been confirmed, but at least one New Zealand passport holder may have been on board Flight MH17, Foreign Minister Murray McCully said.
Bullot, who is married to NZ MasterChef winner Chelsea Winter, said he feels lucky he didn't take the ill-fated flight as planned.
"It's a good day to be alive," he wrote on Facebook.
He said he arrived at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport on Wednesday to check in on his booked flight but was told it had been overbooked.
The airline told Bullot he would be placed on standby and if a seat didn't become available, he could catch the next day's flight to Kuala Lumpur - the one that crashed.
The sailor said he was one of about 20 to 30 people standing at the gate waiting to see if they could board their flight.
He says he was lucky enough to be given a seat a few minutes before the gate closed.
"Too many what-ifs to think about right now," he wrote.
"Wondering how many of those behind me in line were pushed back a day..."
