PUTRAJAYA, April 13 – The final investigation report into the Sabah Air plane crash that killed the then Chief Minister of Sabah, Tun Fuad Stephens, is now classified as an open document and it can be accessed on the Ministry of Transport’s website from Wednesday. Announcing the matter, Transport Minister Anthony Loke said he had reclassified the report as an open document by using the powers provided under Section 2C of the Official Secrets Act 1972.
He said the process to declassify the report was completed on April 6 after Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the report on the tragedy, which was also dubbed the ‘Double Six’, was declassified on April 5. Starting today, the complete report can be downloaded from the official website of the Ministry of Transport Malaysia at: https://www.mot.gov.my/en/aviation/reports/n22b-nomad,” he said in a statement.
He said the final investigation report of the Nomad N22B 9M-ATZ air accident was completed on 25 January 1977 and then presented to the Cabinet in March 1977. However, the results of the investigation into the report were never announced. Therefore, for almost 47 years, the family members of the victims involved could not find out the facts and reasons behind the air crash,” he said. A total of 11 lives were lost in the Double-Six tragedy, including the senior leadership of the Sabah State Government at the time, namely Fuad (Chief Minister of Sabah);
Datuk Peter Joinod Mojuntin (Sabah Housing and Local Government Minister); Datuk Chong Thien Vun (Sabah Minister of Communications and Public Works) and Datuk Salleh Sulong (Sabah Minister of Finance). Also killed were Datuk Darius Binion (Assistant Minister to the Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah); Datuk Wahid Peter Andau (Permanent Secretary of the Sabah Ministry of Finance); Dr Syed Hussein Wafa (Director of the Sabah Economic Planning Unit) and Ishak Atan (Secretary to the Malaysian Finance Minister).
Anthony said that every aviation incident must be investigated transparently and comprehensively to instill international trust in Malaysia’s ability to build an aviation industry that is credible and meets the highest standards. The Ministry of Transport is committed to continue this policy of openness,” he said, who also expressed his condolences to all the families and next of kin of the victims who died in the ‘Double Six’ tragedy.
