'I accept his death as fate,' - MH17 co-pilot's mother

"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.