MH19 new flight code for MAS' Amsterdam-KL service

Malaysia Airlines (MAS) will carry the new flight code MH19 for its Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur service beginning July 25, the airline said today.

The code MH17 is being retired as a mark of respect for the 298 people on board the flight that crashed in Ukraine last Thursday, it said in a press statement.

"There are no changes to the frequency of our services and we will continue to operate daily services between Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpur.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of our colleagues and passengers of MH17," MAS said.

The MAS flight, MH17, was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it went down in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, near the Russian border on Thursday night.

The Boeing 777 aircraft was carrying 298 people - 283 passengers and 15 crew.

Foreign media reports said the aircraft was shot down but until today no one has claimed responsibility.

Ukrainian authorities believe the aircraft was shot down. The crash site is in an area where Ukrainian forces are fighting pro-Russia rebels.