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A
missed email and a sick relative prevented two Indonesian families – of five
and 10 members respectively – from catching the AirAsia QZ8501 flight. They had
cursed their misfortune, before the news came of the plane having disappeared
from radars.
Chandra
Susanto, who had been planning a holiday in Singapore with his wife and three
children since March, had to cancel it a day before the due date, because his
father got ill.
Daily Mail Australia reports “It was a difficult decision to make
because my son Christopher was so disappointed,” Susanto said. “He had
been looking forward to the holiday for a long time.”
Susanto
has now posted a picture of his QZ8501 ticket on Facebook, praising Christ for
the miraculous escape.
“Thank you, Lord Jesus. Your plan is so
beautiful, our family safe from harm,” he wrote.
Susanto,
his wife Inge, and their children - Christopher,10, Nadine, 7, and Felix, 5 –
are among the 23 ‘no-shows’ for the AirAsia plane, which was on its way from
the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore, when it lost contact with air
traffic control early on Sunday morning.
“Our lives have changed,”
Susanto said. “We are so
grateful. We have an opportunity to be the best people we can and to help
others.”
And
it was a really narrow escape for the family of 10 of Ari Putro Cahyonom and
his wife Christianawati, who apparently missed an email informing them the
flight had been rescheduled for an earlier departure.
Five
adults and five children, including a seven-month-old and an 11-month-old,
almost made it to the plane and could still see a group of passengers boarding.
However, when they ran up to the gate, it was closed.
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The
upset family, unwilling to give up on a holiday in Singapore, was trying to
negotiate a later flight when an airport official brought them the news of the
flight they missed.
"This must have been the best Christmas
gift your family ever received," Christianawati recalled the
official’s words in an interview to Fairfax Media. "The flight you were supposed to be on has
crashed."
The
fate of the missing plane actually remains unknown. The search operation still
goes on. The head of Indonesia's search and rescue agency has, however, told
journalists the plane is likely at the bottom of the sea.
"It was a miracle that happened to my
family, and I believe God will provide the same miracle to all the families who
are waiting for their loved ones," Cahyonom now says.
There
were 162 people, mostly Indonesians, on board the missing QZ8501 flight - 155
passengers and seven crew members.
Their
relatives are still waiting at Changi Airport in Singapore and Juanda Airport
in Surabaya for news of the lost plane.
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The search operation led by
Indonesia and joined by Australia, Malaysia and Singapore, was halted for the
night on Sunday and has resumed Monday morning.
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