Kuala Lumpur, June 12 (IANS): Malaysian deputy Foreign Minister Hamzah Zainuddin Thursday said families of seven passengers on the missing MH370 flight received $50,000 as advance payment from Malaysia Airlines (MAS).
Hamzah, who led Malaysia's ministerial-level sub-committee to resolve the issues of the next-of-kin, said the full payment would be made after the issue of MH370 was over, Xinhua reported.
"Whether the plane is found, or we announce the plane is lost. There will be a time that we will announce certain issues," Hamzah added.
Hamzah said the seven claimants comprised six Malaysians and one Chinese national, while the identities of 40 claimants for missing Chinese passengers were being checked by the Chinese government.
Flight MH370, carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew members, left the Kuala Lumpur International Airport for Beijing, China, at 12.41 a.m. on March 8 and disappeared from radar screens about an hour later while over the South China Sea.
The Malaysian government said in a statement issued last week that the country will keep searching for MH370 for as long as it takes.