Anja returned home safely

At exactly 18:03 EST Anja touched down on Shiphol Airport's Kaagbaan. The Boeing 777 -200 Extended Range in KLM Asia livery was easily recognisable from the motorway A4.
I pulled into Terminal 3 at exactly the same time as Mount Kilimanjaro (PH-BQK). On the busiest holiday of the year, the terminal should've been a beehive of 'shiny happy people' leaving for the corners of the world. Or may be just a good beach.

But this week everybody, even cockpit and cabin crew, board their aircraft with mixed feelings. Nobody leaves Schiphol without visiting the memorial for flight MH17 just outside Terminal 3. All know how many flights have taken the exact same route that MH17 took. All know they've taken an KLM, SAL or MAS to Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and back. Flights that would still be flying over Ukraine if MH17 had arrived safely. Many know, it could've been them and they imagine what it must be like to be in an airliner hit by buckshot...

It's a bit sobering, but I guess we should be extra happy that Anja's back. Made it safely on January 10^th and took a detour on July 25^th. So we can embrace, visit the memorial and return home...

Flowers at the MH17 memorial in Schiphol's Terminal 3. 

 The next day, a Dutch military C130 transport plane flew back from Ukraine to the Netherlands, to bring the last 38 coffins back to Amsterdam.