Faces of flight MH370: What we know about the passengers

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Malaysian authorities say they now believe missing flight MH370 crashed into the southern Indian Ocean with no survivors.

The passenger plane carrying 239 people, including six Australians, was en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing when it went missing on March 8.

Take a look at what we know about some of the passengers on board.

Rod and Mary Burrows

Rodney and Mary Burrows were on board the Malaysia Airlines flight that disappeared. [Photo/Queensland Police Service]

Brisbane couple Rod and Mary Burrows were on a long-planned overseas trip with friends.

Mrs Burrows had been a civilian employee with the Queensland Police Service for 16 years.

The couple had three children and were reportedly expecting their first grandchild in April.

Mr Burrows' mother Irene Burrows spoke to her son just days before the plane's disappearance.

"He was very excited about going. It's not their first overseas trip but it was planned for a long time," she said.

"[We are] just waiting for some sort of news. If they've found the wreckage or if they can tell us ... how can a plane just disappear?"

The couple's son Jayden Burrows says his parents worked hard to reap the rewards of their retirement, so they could travel and spend time with family and friends.

"We dearly love and we'll miss our mum and dad," he said.

"The love and compassion that they shared and their priority of putting their family first will help us get through this together.

"We're heartbroken this stage of their life has been cut short."

Robert and Catherine Lawton

Queenslanders Catherine and Robert Lawton were on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. [Photo/Facebook]

Queensland couple Robert and Catherine Lawton lived at Springfield Lakes in Brisbane's south-west.

The doting grandparents were travelling with Queensland couple Rod and Mary Burrows.

According to the couple's neighbour Caroline Daintith, they were keen travellers who took a trip every year.

"It was a big part of their lives and we knew they were excited about going on this trip," she said.

During the search, the couple's family issued a statement thanking the public for their well wishes and prayers.

The couple's daughters and extended family said they were trying to remain positive while also bracing for the worst.

Gu Naijun and Li Yuan

Tributes flow for missing Australians during MH370 search [Video/7pm TV News QLD]

The third Australian couple to travel on the missing Malaysian flight were Gu Naijun and Li Yuan, from Sydney.

Ms Gu, 31 and Mr Li, 33, were originally from China but reportedly met in Sydney.

Reports say Mr Li, 33, was a partner in software firm Beijing Landysoft Technology.

The couple also owned a petrol station at Miranda in southern Sydney and balanced business and family life across Australia and China.

As the search for the missing flight continued, photos emerged of Ms Gu with her daughters.

Paul Weeks

Perth-based New Zealand man Paul Weeks was en route to Mongolia to begin a fly-in, fly-out role with mining contractor Transwest.

New Zealand father-of-two, Paul Weeks, was on board missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. [Photo/ABC TV]

The 38-year-old moved to Perth with his young family two years ago.

The father of two last contacted his family from the airport lounge before he boarded the flight.

Shortly after news of the plane's disappearance broke, his wife Danica said she would have to stay strong for their children.

"I've got two - an 11-month-old and a three-and-a-half-year-old - who, at three-and-a-half, I mean he's an intelligent little boy, and I've just got to be strong for him because ... if the worst-case scenario is confirmed, I have to be his strength."

She said Mr Weeks was looking forward to starting his "dream job".

"He was emailing me when he was in the lounge before he got on the flight," she said.

"He emailed me and the title was 'missing you already' and in it he wrote, you know, 'you and the boys are my world'."

Another New Zealand man, 50-year-old Ximin Wang, was also on the plane.

Philip Wood

American passenger Philip Wood. [Photo/Facebook]

Texas man Philip Wood was one of three Americans on board flight MH370.

According to local newspapers, the 50-year-old was working for IBM in Kuala Lumpur and had previously lived in Beijing.

His father had also worked for IBM before retiring.

Mr Wood has two adult sons, who live in Texas.

The two other American citizens on board the flight were two-year-old Yan Zhang, and four-year-old Nicole Meng.

Muktesh Mukherjee and Bai Xiaomo

China-based Canadian couple Muktesh Mukherjee and Bai Xiaomo were the only two Canadians on board the flight.

Local newspapers reported Indian-born Mr Mukherjee, 42, worked as vice-president of China operations for US-based company Xcoal Energy & Resources.

The pair had lived in Montreal and Chicago before moving to China, where 37-year-old Ms Bai was born.

The couple reportedly have two sons who were staying with their grandmother in Beijing while their parents went on holiday.

Mystery travellers

Early in the investigation it was revealed that two passengers were travelling on stolen European passports.

The revelations fuelled concern the disappearance was linked to terrorism.

The passengers were found to be Iranian nationals Pouria Nour Mohammad Mehrdad, 18, and Delavar Seyed Mohammad Reza, 29.

Police say Mehrdad was trying to migrate to Germany, and do not believe either man was a member of a terrorist group.

The BBC has reported that the men using the false passports purchased tickets together and were due to fly on to Europe from Beijing, meaning they did not have to apply for a Chinese visa and undergo further checks.

Pouria Nour Mohammad Mehrdad (L) and Delavar Seyed Mohammad Reza (R), who both boarded missing Malaysia Airlines MH370 flight using stolen European passports. [Photo/AFP: Malaysian Police]

The pilots

As the mystery surrounding the flight grew, attention turned to the pilots.

The flight was piloted by captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, 53, who had flown with Malaysia Airlines since 1981. He had a total of 18,365 flying hours.

Captain of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, date of photo unknown. [Photo/Facebook]

The first officer was 27-year-old Fariq Ab Hamid, who joined the airline in 2007 and had flown a total of 2,763 hours.

The homes of Captain Zaharie and first officer Fariq were searched by authorities in the middle-class suburbs of Kuala Lumpur close to the international airport.

An experienced pilot, Captain Zaharie has been described by current and former co-workers as a flying enthusiast who spent his days off operating a life-sized flight simulator he had set up at home.

Posts on the captain's Facebook page suggest he was a politically active opponent of the coalition that has ruled Malaysia for the 57 years since independence.

A senior police official said the flight simulator programs had been closely examined, adding they appeared to be normal ones that allow users to practise flying and landing in different conditions.

A second senior police official told Reuters investigators have found no links between Captain Zaharie, a father of three grown-up children and a grandfather, and any militant group.

Malaysian Airlines chief Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid broadcast the informal sign-off "all right, good night" and the plane's tracking system was switched off two minutes later.

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-25/malaysia-airlines-mh370-passengers/5343010

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