Russia Faces 'Hard-Hitting' Sanctions Over MH17

Europe's Russia Sanctions Avoid Self-Harm

Updated: 9:49am UK, Tuesday 22 July 2014

By Ed Conway, Economics Editor

Sanctions against Russia have now been in place since its annexation of Crimea in March - but following the flight MH17 disaster, all the signs are that they will soon be reinforced.

So what, precisely, do the current sanctions consist of, have they been at all successful, and what might they be followed up with?

In short, the current set of restrictions are, in the jargon, referred to as "stage-two" sanctions.

Rather than affecting the entire economy, or entire sectors, they are forensically focused restrictions on a few individuals and smallish companies.

Both the US and Europe have imposed visa restrictions and asset freezes on a number of influential Russians. The US list is longer and includes a number of President Vladimir Putin's most senior advisers.

Neither jurisdiction has yet added the president to the sanctions list, as was done with Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, for instance.

The US has also imposed financial blocks on two small banks, one of which Putin claimed never to have heard of.

The day before the crash last week, it also extended the restrictions to a couple of oil companies, including Rosneft, the country's biggest oil producer.

However, it's worth noting that these are purely financial restrictions, preventing the companies from raising cash in the US, rather than stopping them from pumping oil out of the ground and around the world.

While the EU has signalled it will stop European Investment Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development programmes in Russia, it has stopped short of more severe sanctions.

Why? In large part because of its reliance on Russia for trade. A full 15% of Russia's gas exports end up in Germany. Some 17% of its trade goes to the Netherlands, though this is probably an over-estimate because much of that is merely passing through the port of Antwerp.

While Mediterranean parts of the continent have less direct economic exposure to Russia, save for Italy, which sucks in 9% of Russia's gas, they are also desperate not to upend any chances of an economic recovery following the euro crisis.

It's very difficult indeed to find any evidence that the sanctions themselves have made much difference.

The Russian economy is in a recession, but it was already heading in that direction before the Ukraine crisis.

And while investment and share prices have both fallen in Moscow, that seems due to fear of "proper" sanctions rather than the semi-sanctions now in place.

So what more can be done? The short answer is to extend the sanctions to some sectors, or some mega-companies, and individuals.

Open Europe's Raoul Ruparel thinks a three-pronged approach, involving roughly equal sacrifice from the continent's biggest players, would be most reasonable: Some financial sanctions (which would hurt Britain); some arms sanctions (which would hurt France) and some manufacturing and technology sanctions (which would hurt Germany).

But such system-wide sanctions - "stage three" measures, as they are called - are far from decided.

They would be deeply controversial, and raise the risk, feared by all in Europe, that Putin could retaliate by cutting off the gas supply to Europe.

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MH17: Families And Futures 'Ruined' By Crash

The girlfriend of one of the Britons killed when flight MH17 was shot down has spoken of the "happy memories" of their time together, adding: "I just wish there could be future ones too."

Abby Clark's boyfriend Richard Mayne, a Leeds University student, died along with 297 others when the Malaysia Airlines plane came down in Ukraine last week.

Hundreds of people moved by his death have donated money to an online fundraising page for disadvantaged children, which the 20-year-old set up for a charity trek to Everest base camp earlier this year.

In an emotional Facebook post, Ms Clark, from Leicester, said: "I honestly can't believe what has happened and what I am writing. Sleep tight, Richard.

Richard Mayne had been studying in Leeds. Pic: Abby Clark/Facebook

"Not only were you my boyfriend for five years, you were so much more.

"You are my best friend, my rock and I don't know what to do without you now.

"Reading through everyone's messages to you makes me feel so proud to have been in your life. You have so many people in awe of you, including myself.

"I just keep feeling like you're going to walk in the kitchen and everything (will get) back to normal.

"I need you so bad right now, baby. I have so many happy memories of us that will stay with me forever.

The Malaysia Airlines plane crashed near Grabovo in eastern Ukraine

"I just wish more than anything there could be future ones too.

"I love you (and I) always will."

Ms Clark's grief was shared by the father of Elsemiek de Borst, one of 192 Dutch passengers who were on board the downed Boeing 777.

In an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin that has been widely shared online, Hans de Borst wrote: "Thank you, Mr Putin, separatist leaders or the Ukrainian government, for murdering my loved and only child.

"I hope you're proud to have shot her and that you can look at yourself in the mirror."

Elsemiek de Borst was going on holiday. Pic: Hans de Borst/Facebook

He signs the letter as "Elsemiek's father, whose life is ruined".

The bodies of many of those killed in last week's crash have been taken by train to the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, where they will handed over to Dutch officials.

They will then be flown to the Netherlands, where relatives have gathered, desperate to lay their loved ones to rest.

Allegations of looting at the crash site in Grabovo, where victims' wallets and purses have reportedly been emptied, will have added to the families' distress.

Sky News correspondents at the scene said they had seen no proof of rebels rifling through passengers' belongings.

But Anton Geraschchenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian minister of internal affairs, said: "Death hunters are collecting not only the cash and jewellery of the victims but also their credit cards.

"They might try to use them in Ukraine or pass them on to Russia, and my humble request to the relatives of the victims is to freeze their cards, so they won't lose their assets to terrorists."

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MH17 Crash Victims' Bodies Arrive At Station

A train carrying many of the victims of flight MH17 has arrived in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, where the bodies will be handed over to Dutch officials.

The refrigerated wagons made the 186-mile (300km) journey from Torez overnight, after armed separatists who had been guarding the carriages allowed them to leave.

Inside were up to 280 bodies, which will now be flown to the Netherlands where two-thirds of the 298 victims came from.

Borodai (L) hands over the black boxes to Col Sakri (R)

The train's arrival comes after rebel leaders in eastern Ukraine handed over the black boxes from the downed passenger plane to Malaysian experts.

As the flight recorders were placed on a desk, Aleksander Borodai, prime minister of the self-styled Donetsk People's Republic, told a packed room at the separatists' headquarters: "Here they are, the black boxes."

Malaysian Colonel Mohamed Sakri said the boxes, which may hold crucial evidence, are "intact, although a bit damaged".

However, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott also warned evidence had been interfered with on an "industrial scale", saying there is "still a long, long way to go".

The train carrying the bodies of many of the victims arrives in Kharkiv

"After the crime comes the cover-up," he added.

As the diplomatic fallout from the disaster continues, EU foreign ministers will discuss imposing new sanctions on Russia.

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said: "We have an opportunity to send a very clear message to Russia. We're obviously pleased there's been movement on the repatriation of victims and that some access has been granted to the site.

"But we mustn't forget the overall context. This terrible incident happened because of Russia's support to the separatists in eastern Ukraine and because of the flow of heavy weapons from Russia into Ukraine, and we have to address that."

A satellite image of the wreckage of MH17. Pic: DigitalGlobe

Moscow has called for the investigation into the shooting down of the plane to be led by the "international community" and not Ukraine, after yet more accusations were traded between Russia and Ukraine over who is to blame.

Lyudmila Vorobyeva, the Russian ambassador to Malaysia, told a news conference the probe should be led by the United Nation's International Civil Aviation Organisation.

"The rebels, as we understand, do not trust the government of Kiev," said Ms Vorobyeva.

"That's why they were reluctant to hand over anything (including) the black boxes."

Part of the wreckage of flight MH17, which had 298 people on board

She added that audio recordings of rebels admitting shooting down the plane are "fake" and a "compilation of different conversations".

Meanwhile, a ceasefire within a six-mile (10km) radius of the crash site will be put in place so international investigators can examine the wreckage of the Boeing 777 that was shot down near Grabovo last week.

It comes after fighting between separatists and pro-Ukrainian groups flared in Donetsk, some 40 miles (60km) from the crash site.

Health officials said four people were killed in Monday's clashes, while rebel military commander Igor Strelkov said up to 12 of his men died in the fighting.

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Russians Oblivious To Growing Anger Over MH17

On a busy street in central Moscow, a well-dressed man stands yelling at the crowd: "Don't you understand? There will be a war!"

All around him, people walk by, wholly uninterested. It's a hot summer's day, they're enjoying the sun.

Save for a couple of tourists taking pictures, no-one pays much attention at all.

The friend of a friend who saw this posted the news on Facebook. 

A message left among tributes outside the Dutch embassy in Kiev, Ukraine

Someone responded with a cartoon of Homer Simpson holding a sign that says: "The End is Near".

There are people here who are genuinely concerned about the direction Russia is heading under Vladimir Putin, but they are very much in the minority.

Anyone watching Russian state TV (from which, according to a Levada Centre poll, an estimated 94% of population get their news) would have little idea of the weight of the international outrage building against their leader and the threat of serious sanctions to come.

Instead, they will be treated to a rundown of the "10 questions Ukraine's government must answer", and clips of Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, insisting that any accusation of Russian involvement is "unfounded" and that he "hasn't heard anything truthful from Kiev for months".

This will not surprise viewers who have spent those months listening to condemnation of the "junta" in Kiev, which they have regularly been told is controlled by fascists.

The morning after the crash, some Russian newspapers didn't even cover it.

Pro-Russian separatists have denied being behind the downing of the plane

The official state newspaper, Rossiskaya Gazeta, decided the loss of 298 lives was not its top story, leading instead with an "exclusive investigation" into what Russians eat and drink, the fate of flight MH17 relegated to the bottom of the page.

So there is no real outrage, no clamour for Mr Putin to act, no widespread fear that under his leadership Russia could be about to become a pariah state.

On the contrary, Mr Putin's approval ratings are at an all-time high.

After the annexation of Crimea, his popularity hit 83%.

For all of the stern diplomatic dressings down he received, in Russia it was a genuinely wildly popular move.

A pro-Russian separatist holds up a stuffed toy found at the crash site

But those inside the Kremlin also know how precariously Russia's economy is poised, and how rapidly that popularity could evaporate if sectoral sanctions are applied, hitting the oil and gas revenues on which the Russian books depend.

Mr Putin's presidency has coincided for the majority with an increase in living standards, an influx of western technology and designer goods, the ability to enjoy holidays abroad.

But for all of the projection of Russia's military might of late, its economy is starting to look quite fragile, with growth grinding to a halt, and an estimated $75bn worth of capital leaving the country so far this year.

Mr Putin knows real biting economic sanctions could hurt Russia, and him personally.

But he knows it will hurt Europe too.

The question now is whether he really believes European leaders will follow all their words with any meaningful action.

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Jet Horror: Putin 'Is On The Side Of The Devil'

Ukraine's Prime Minister has said Vladimir Putin is "on the side of the devil" as he reiterated Kiev's view that Russia had a clear role in shooting down flight MH17.

Arseniy Yatsenyuk said the Malaysia Airlines plane carrying 298 people was probably brought down by a BUK-M1 missile launcher.

"This system could not be operated by drunk pro-Russian terrorists. There were professional people," he told a news conference.

He also said Kiev is willing to hand over the probe into the atrocity to the Netherlands and its international partners.

Mr Yatsenyuk spoke out after the Russian President vowed to "do everything to ensure the security and safety" of experts investigating the disaster.

Mr Putin said "all people" in Ukraine are responsible for the tragedy.

"No one has the right to use this tragedy for any kind of vested interest in the political sense. Such incidents should unite people rather than separate them," he said.

"We need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site."

However, Mr Yatsenyuk said: "I do not expect anything from the Russian government ... Putin should understand that it's enough already. This is not a conflict between Ukraine and Russia. It is an international conflict."

He added: "Russia is on the dark side, on the side of the devil."

Earlier, US Secretary of State John Kerry said intelligence assessments had provided overwhelming evidence of Russian complicity in the downing of MH17.

Mr Kerry also demanded Russia take responsibility for the actions of pro-Moscow rebels in Eastern Ukraine, branding their mishandling of victims' bodies as "grotesque".

A woman and a child view tributes to the victims at Schiphol Airport

Ukrainian government investigators say 272 of the 298 bodies have now been found scattered over fields at Grabovo in the Donetsk region.

Two trains carrying 251 bodies are stuck in the town of Torez because "terrorists are blocking its exit".

Mr Putin has promised Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte he will help retrieve bodies and black boxes from the crash site.

However, Mary Dejevsky, a Russian and EU analyst, told Sky News that Mr Putin controls rebels in the area "far less than is commonly believed outside Russia".

People work at the crash site of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17

She said nobody controls the area which is "one of the reasons why things are so desperate there".

Malaysia's Foreign Minister YB Dato' Sri Anifah Aman has arrived in Kiev to help authorities with the "repatriation of all passengers that perished in MH17 flight".

In the Netherlands, Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima are to attend a gathering later for relatives of the 193 Dutch people who died on the plane.

The pair have been criticised for not attending memorial services for the victims on Sunday. Their aides are refusing to say what they were doing instead.

Anger is growing against the Russian leader

As public anger grows over claims of looting and evidence being tampered with at the crash site, Mr Kerry threatened "additional steps" against Moscow, while calling on European allies to take a tougher stance with sanctions.

He stopped short of blaming Moscow directly for shooting down the jet, but argued there was an overwhelming case that Russia had equipped insurgents with the sophisticated missile system needed to destroy an aircraft flying at 33,000ft.

"It's pretty clear that this is a system that was transferred from Russia," Mr Kerry said.

Moscow has denied any involvement and has blamed Ukrainian forces for bringing down the airliner.

The UN Security Council will today vote on a resolution to condemn the downing of the aircraft.

The resolution, drafted by Australia, demands that those responsible for bringing the plane down will be held accountable, and that armed groups do not compromise the integrity of the crash site.

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MH17: 'Bloody Guerrillas' Hold Train Of Bodies

Trains containing bodies from the MH17 crash site are being blocked by "terrorists", the Ukrainian government has said.

Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said: "We sent two trains, four carts, which right now are in Torez City.

"These bloody guerrillas do not allow the train to leave the area."

The trains are reportedly surrounded by 50 insurgents - but Dutch forensic teams say they have been promised the wagons will be released later on Monday so they can "do their work".

There are conflicting reports about whether the refrigeration systems on the trains are working.

Investigators cover their mouths and noses while inspecting the wagons

Rescuers have found 272 of the 298 victims in the area where the Malaysia Airlines flight came down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday.

There are fears some of the bodies were incinerated without a trace during the crash.

Michael Bociurkiw, a spokesman for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, said: "We're looking at the field where the engines have come down.

"This was the area which was exposed to the most intense heat. We do not see any bodies here. It appears that some have been vaporised."

A pro-Russian rebel guards a train carrying crash victims' bodies

The have also been accusations that bodies were removed by rebels.

Lyubov Kudryavets, a worker at the Torez morgue, said that on the evening the plane went down, a resident brought in the bloodied body of a child aged seven or eight. On Saturday militiamen came to take it away, she said.

"They began to question me: 'Where are the fragments of rocket? Where are the fragments from the plane?'" Ms Kudryavets said.

The blocking of the trains comes despite comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin that "we need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site".

Meanwhile, Mr Yatsenyuk is willing to hand control of the crash investigation to Western partners.

The Netherlands, which lost 192 citizens, could take the lead.

Two German experts are making their way to the crash site, while six British investigators are in Kiev ready to join the effort.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was due to make a statement on the crash on Monday - but it was cancelled due to "potential developments on the ground" in Ukraine. The Malaysians would not elaborate. 

Elsewhere, Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko has ordered his forces to halt fire in a 40 kilometre (24 mile) area around the crash site.

But the military is trying to break into Donetsk - which was taken by rebels in April - in the first major outbreak of violence since the crash.

Fighting is under way near the city's railway station, with reports of shelling and tanks from both sides heading to the area. 

Sky's Colin Brazier, in Donetsk, understands two people have died in clashes.

Pro-Russian separatists on a tank near Donetsk on Sunday

Ukraine's military has denied responsibility for any explosions in the country's second city.

"There is work on clearing approaches to the city, on destroying checkpoints of the terrorists. If there are explosions in the middle of the city, then it is not Ukrainian soldiers," said Andriy Lysenko.

"We have strict orders not to use air strikes and artillery in the city. If there is fighting in the city, we have information that there is a small self-organised group who are fighting with the terrorists." 

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Rebels Load MH17 Crash Bodies Onto Trains

Armed pro-Russian separatists have reportedly forced emergency workers to hand over all 196 bodies recovered from the Malaysia Airlines crash site.

International monitors and Ukrainian officials said victims' remains were taken away and loaded onto refrigerator wagons on trains at Torez station which were said to be headed for rebel-held Donetsk.

Kiev's emergency officials said 196 bodies have been recovered so far, as a rebel called "Novorossiya" reportedly tweeted that the jet's two black box voice and data recorders had been taken to the eastern Ukrainian city.

Bodies are said to have been loaded onto this train at Torez station

It comes as footage emerged showing evidence that one flight recorder had been recovered at the scene, two days ago.

World leaders have piled pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the armed Moscow-backed rebels from preventing investigators from fully accessing the MH17 crash site.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said Europe and the West must "fundamentally change our approach" unless Mr Putin alters his stance, amid claims Russia-backed rebels were involved.

International monitors and journalists are confronted by armed separatists

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond accused Russia of "dragging its heels" on Sky's Murnaghan programme.

The prospect of further sanctions against Russia was raised as public anger and concerns grow over claims of looting and evidence being tampered with.

The US has condemned the lack of security at the scene as an "affront to all those who lost loved ones and to the dignity the victims deserve", while Malaysia has attacked the failure to preserve evidence as a "betrayal of the lives lost".

A message left among floral tributes outside the Dutch Embassy in Kiev

The Ukraine government has accused pro-Russian separatists of removing bodies from the crash scene and debris, and attempting to destroy evidence.

Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said the government was "angry" and "furious" over allegations bodies were being dragged around the site.

Sky presenter Colin Brazier, at the crash site, said: "There is an area about 50ft in diameter, completely charred, with a group of the people in overalls picking up body parts and putting them into plastic bags.

"I've been walking around, coming across body parts all the time, many of them charred beyond recognition.

A still showing evidence that a flight recorder was found, two days ago

"Men, women and children indeterminate, frankly, you can't tell. Very often you are looking at charred spines, that's all that's left.

"There are flies. It is hot. There are stretchers lying by the roadside. They have not been used because many of the bodies were dismembered by the forces of the impact.

"It is a truly macabre, horrific situation. There is a degree of anarchy and lawlessness.

"The situation is such that you feel the need for an overarching body to get a grip and sort this dreadful situation out."

All 298 passengers including 10 Britons and 80 children were killed when flight MH17, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

The Ukrainian army said "mortar attacks from the direction of Russia aimed at Ukrainian posts" were recorded just after midnight and again at 2am on Sunday.

Kiev and Moscow have blamed each other for the air disaster.

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Israel Minister Accuses Hamas Of 'Self-Genocide'

An Israeli minister has defended the ground offensive in Gaza and accused Hamas of "self-genocide" by using women and children as human shields.

Naftali Bennett, appearing on Dermot Murnaghan's programme, insisted Israel would continue to retaliate to rocket strikes from Gaza.

The Israeli economic minister said: "The only difference between us and Hamas in Gaza is that they are deliberately sending their women and children to stand next to missile launchers in order for them to get killed, and then they cry to the world that they are being killed.

"This is cynical and cowardly. Israel has all the right to defend itself.

Israel began a ground offensive in Gaza on Thursday

"They started this, they are continuing this, this can all go away the moment they disarm themselves and stop shooting us.

"Hamas is placing missiles in homes, in living rooms, in schools, in children's rooms, this is their modus operandi.

"If Hamas was shooting missiles at your home, from within a school, what would you do?

"Would you just wait for those missiles to kill you? We fight back.

"Sometimes yes in wars there is collateral damage, but I'm not going to ask forgiveness for defending my four children that had rockets shot at home this very morning.

"What Hamas is doing is effectively self-genocide."

Since the start of fighting nearly two weeks ago, 378 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 3,000 wounded, according to Gaza Health Ministry official Ashraf al Kidra.

A total of five Israeli soldiers have also been killed since the ground offensive began on Thursday. Two Israeli citizens have also been killed in rocket attacks.

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Bodies In The Street As Gazans Flee Shelling

At least 50 people have been killed and many more wounded after the Israeli military shelled a Gaza neighbourhood, according to Sky sources.

Thousands of Palestinians fled Shaja'iya in northeast Gaza - some by foot and others in the backs of trucks or sitting on the hoods of packed cars - as the attack began.

Sky's Sherine Tadros, reporting from Shaja'iya, said Palestinians leaving the area were describing it as a "massacre".

"This is a very heavily populated residential area," she said.

An injured Palestinian woman at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City

"We have seen hundreds upon hundreds of people leaving and they are not carrying bags packed with clothes, they are not carrying anything. They are literally running for their lives." 

Israeli tanks were reported to be firing into the neighbourhood while drones and fighter jets could be heard overhead.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said: "Two days ago, residents of Shaja'iya received recorded messages to evacuate the area in order to protect their lives."

But Sherine Tadros said there is nowhere for those fleeing the assault to run to.

"They are leaving this area but of course there is nowhere safe here," she said.

An Apache helicopter fires a missile into Gaza City

"You expect to see all these people flee across a border, but they can't cross a border. Gaza is completely locked off."

Hamas accepted a proposal - secured by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - for a three-hour humanitarian ceasefire on Sunday.

Spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said: "The ICRC contacted (us) and offered to broker a three-hour humanitarian truce to enable ambulances to evacuate the dead and wounded and Hamas accepted it."

But an Israeli military spokesman said it had agreed to a two-hour truce.

Naftali Bennett, Israeli economic minister, told Sky News Hamas was "cynically" using women and children as human shields.

He said: "They only difference between us and Hamas in Gaza is that they are deliberately sending their women and children to stand next to missile launchers in order for them to get killed and then they cry to the world that they are being killed.

Smoke rises after air strikes in Shaja'iya, northeast Gaza

"This is cynical and cowardly. Israel has all the right to defend itself.

"They started this, they are continuing this, this can all go away the moment they disarm themselves and stop shooting us."

The Israeli military has said it has hit more than 2,500 targets in Gaza, including 1,100 rocket launchers, after nearly two weeks of fighting.

It has said around 70 militants have been killed and another 13 brought to Israel for questioning.

It claims militants have fired more than 1,760 rockets at Israeli cities since July 8.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has travelled to Qatar to try to restart ceasefire efforts.

Last week, Hamas rejected an Egyptian-brokered truce - saying it would only agree if Israel and Egypt significantly eased the border blockade of Gaza.

Since the start of the fighting, 378 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 3,000 wounded, according to Gaza Health Ministry official Ashraf al Kidra.

Two Israeli soldiers died in the fighting this weekend, while another three were killed when the ground offensive began on Thursday. Two Israeli civilians have also been killed in rocket attacks.

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Briton On Doomed MH17 Almost Missed Flight

A friend of Robert Ayley, one of the 10 British victims on board flight MH17, has revealed the father-of-two almost missed the flight.

Bill Patteson, who was travelling with the 27-year-old around Europe visiting Rottweiler breeders, has told Sky News his friend didn't make it onto the bus to take him from his hotel to Amsterdam's Schiphol airport.

But Mr Ayley, who was originally from Guildford but moved to New Zealand as a child, managed to get there in time to board the doomed Malaysia Airlines flight, which was shot down over Ukraine with almost 300 people on board.

An ex-journalist, helicopter pilot, students and Newcastle United fans are among the other British victims.

Mr Patteson, who flew back to New Zealand the day before, said: "There were so many things that came together to make Rob be on that flight.

"The stars really had to align for Robert to be on that flight, even right down to the last minute.

Six of the British victims on flight MH17

"Everyone was hoping he'd missed the flight, but Robert being the great organiser that he was managed to get on his flight."

Mr Patteson described his friend as a "really great, confident young man" who was proud of his British roots.

Mr Ayley's wife Sharlene wrote on Facebook: "Rob was our everything. We adored him and there was no one else like him. He touched so many hearts and lives.

"We are grateful to forever have him in our hearts."

The Boeing 777-200 in February. Pic: Andreas Fietz

Mr Ayley's family said he was passionate about life and his family, adding that when it came to Rob "there were no half measures".

"He found in his boys two little people he could love, understand and trust," they said.

"When they cried they were sad, when they laughed they were happy and when they hugged it was because they loved him."

The statement added: "Sharlene and Rob are soul mates. She is his 'Princess'. She changed his life and he changed hers.

"She held his heart and he held hers. Rob will live forever in his family."

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