Dutch musician has last word on doomed Malaysian flight

Dutch musician has last word on doomed Malaysian flight

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norman lebrecht

July 18, 2014

Cor Pan, a drummer and singer, will be remembered forever for the pre-takeoff words her published at noon yesterday Amsterdam time on his Facebook page. Cor posted a picture of the plane he was boarding and captioned it: ‘If it should disappear, this is what it looks like.’

Cor was heading on vacation with his girlfriend, Neeltje Tol.

Both perished, to a Putin missile.

This is Cor at work on July 12, in what may have been his last session. Rest his soul. May his loved ones find comfort in the terrible times ahead.

 

(If the video does not come up on screen, click the word ‘Post’ below)

cor pan

Comments

  • Mullah says:

    Are you not able to take critical comments? Lebrecht, you yourself have deserved a missile. Just visit your Jewish Cuntry, maybe Hamas will succeed.

    • norman lebrecht says:

      An example of the stuff we usually spam out. This one comes from Germany. A friendly country, full of music lovers.

      • Dave T says:

        Technically, not spam. Anti-semitic garbage, yes. Ignorant hate mongering, sure. Violence loving bilge, of course. But spam? Not at all, unless he/she were sending the same message to all the classical music blogs run by Jews (Check with the other two guys to see if they got the same post).

    • GEll says:

      Inappropriate attack, whomever you may be.

    • Rob van der Hilst says:

      Please sir, dump the present one because of his or her failure and, of course, take a new one: your shrink

  • Richard says:

    “to a Putin missile”.

    Glad you figured it out, before everyone else.

  • Anon says:

    “a Putin missile” is taking speculation a bit far at this point, perhaps. Even if fired by pro-Russian separatists, it’s more likely to have been a Ukranian BUK system stolen from Ukraine.
    (And don’t forget that mis-idenficiation can happen, even with a trained crew – it’s not so many years since the US shot down an Iranian airliner in mistake for a military aircraft IIRC.)

    Perhaps the greater question is why international airspace was open above FL320 over a war zone, despite routings around the more obviously dangerous parts.

    • norman lebrecht says:

      There are no other missiles of that calibre in the region. Check Jayne’s or any other military authority.

      • Anon says:

        The Ukrainians have had the (originally Russian-designed, but that’s not really relevant) BUK land-based anti-aircraft missile system for some time; I think they even sold the system to Georgia and it was used by both sides in the Russia / Georgia conflict in 2008.
        The Ukrainians reportedly have several batteries of BUK missiles, with over twenty launchers, so it isn’t inconceivable that it is one of these – they are certainly in the region, whoever controls them; some authorities suggest that all these systems have been captured by pro-Russian separatists, others suggest that ‘some’ have.

        In fact, Janes itself reports that the likely weapon was a Ukrainian BUK captured by pro-Russian separatists, so on that basis I stick by my original comment.

  • Anonymus says:

    As it is reported through several credible sources (e.g. pprune.org) flight MH017 was escorted by two Ukraine fighter jets until three minutes before the missile hit.
    Possible scenario:
    Pro-Russian rebels only days ago stated they are about to make a conquered Ukrainian SAM functional.
    Ukraine is provoking said rebels to shoot down a civilian airliner by going into formation with one.
    Rebel operators at the SAM control desk see three blibs coming in on the radar. Clearly not a civilian flight to their eyes. (SAM operators only see the radar, no optical verification possible) Two of the radar blibs brake away, one remains on course. Idiot thinks he is being attacked and pulls the trigger, target destroyed…
    Ukrainians high five, rebels shooting in their own foot. 300 civilians dead…

  • Vaquero357 says:

    Even so….very sad about the drummer. Reminds one that every one of the people who died on that plane had a life and friends and family who mourn their loss.

  • Fourth Norn says:

    A ruthless form of Russian nationalism is the successor to communism in the minds of the smug Vladimir Putin and an old guard who have never come to terms with the demise of the Soviet Union. Putin is strengthened in his sense of self-righteousness by a resurgent Russian Orthodox Church with a stifling social agenda, and his fascination with Russia’s Tsarist past. I have recently returned from Moscow where the evidence is plain to see. This is deeply worrying for Russia’s neighbours and former Soviet vassal states, and rightly so as events in Ukraine have shown. Make no mistake, culture is not immune to Putin’s poisonous brand of nationalism, and those who love Russian music, literature and other arts should not be blind to this exploitation.

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