[PHOTOS] See How Time Came To A Standstill In Netherlands In Honour Of MH17 Victims
The dignified reception at Eindhoven airport is in stark contrast to the treatment of the victims' remains in eastern Ukraine in the days after the crash, where pro-Russian rebels left corpses to decay in the summer heat in body bags dumped around the crash site.
By Sadho Ram — 24 Jul 2014, 01:54 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
Pink roses had been placed on the tarmac at the Kharkiv airport in Ukraine before the C130 Hercules aircraft took off for the Netherlands on 23 July 2014
Flowers lay on the tarmac as a ground Hercules transport aircraft of the Royal Dutch Airforce, carrying bodies from downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, prepares to take off from Kharkiv airport on July 23, 2014.
Image via mshcdn.comAlmost a week after MH17 was shot out of the sky, killing all 298 onboard, the first bodies from the crash were transported to the Netherlands, the country that suffered the hardest toll
Pallbearers carry a coffin out of a military transport plane during a ceremony to mark the return of the first bodies of passengers and crew killed in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, from Ukraine at Eindhoven military air base, Wednesday, July 23, 2014.
Image via mshcdn.comBells rang and flags flew at half-mast. It was the first day of national mourning to take place in the Netherlands since wartime.
King Willem-Alexander and Prime Minister Mark Rutte led dignitaries onto the tarmac as two military aircraft carrying 40 plain wooden coffins landed at Eindhoven Airport
(From L) King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of The Netherlands, and Dutch Prime minister Mark Rutte attend a ceremony upon the arrivals of a plane from Ukraine, carrying the remains of victims of downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, at Eindhoven Airbase on July 23, 2014.
Image via Robin van LonkhuijsenWooden coffins were taken from the planes and placed in a fleet of awaiting hearses at Eindhoven air base
After a minute's silence – observed in stations, factories, offices, and streets across the stunned nation – soldiers and marines boarded the Dutch Hercules C-130 and Australian Boeing C-17 to carry the coffins to 40 waiting hearses lined up on the runway
Relatives of some of the victims were present at the airport but were shielded from the media glare
A Dutch military musician plays the Last Post at the airbase in Eindhoven as MH17 victims' bodies are placed into hearses
In military tradition, the Last Post is the bugle call that signifies the end of the day's activities. It is also sounded at military funerals to indicate that the soldier has gone to his final rest and at commemorative services.
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The convoy of hearses with the remains of the victims of MH17 drives past international flags as it leaves Eindhoven airport to a military base in Hilversum
From Eindhoven, the bodies were to be driven in a convoy of hearses to a military barracks near the town of Hilversum, where forensic experts will begin the painstaking work of putting names to the remains. PM Rutte has said that while some of the bodies may be identified immediately, it may take weeks or even months to complete the grim task.
rt.comDignitaries from the Netherlands and Australia watch as the coffin of an MH17 victim is carried towards the plane
With so many of their countrymen dead, the Dutch have been taking a leading role in the international effort to recover and identify the bodies and investigate MH17 crash
Military men carry a coffin containing the remains of a victim of downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, during a ceremony at Eindhoven Airbase on July 23, 2014.
Image via John ThysThe loss of life has few parallels in recent Dutch history. More than 200 Dutch citizens died in the 1977 Tenerife airport disaster, in which two fully-loaded Boeing 747s collided on the ground, leading to the loss of 583 lives – and the world's worst civil aviation disaster. The worst post-war disaster in the Netherlands occurred in 1953, when the North Sea flooded low-lying eastern areas one stormy night, sweeping over dikes to take more than 1,800 lives.
Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, Frans Timmermans (right) comforts a relative of a victim after the arrival of the plane carrying the bodies of the victims
Stewardesses at Schiphol airport observe one-minute of silence in remembrance of the victims of MH17
The whole of Schiphol airport came to a standstill for one minute in tribute to the victims of MH17
People embrace while paying their respects at Schiphol Airport during a national day of mourning for MH17 victims
A sign displayed inside Amsterdam's Schipol airport - from where MH17 took off - expresses sympathy to everyone facing a loss as a result of the crash
A convoy of hearses carrying coffins containing the remains of MH17 victims, drives from the Eindhoven Airbase to Hilversum
People watching from a bridge a convoy of hearses carrying coffins containing the remains of MH17 victims, driving from the Eindhoven Airbase to Hilversum
An aerial view shows people standing on the side of the road as the convoy of hearses carrying the bodies of MH17 victims is on its way to Hilversum
The convoy of hearses carrying coffins containing the remains of MH17 victims arrives at the Korporaal van Oudheusden Kazerne in front a crowd of people lined up along the road
Family members of MH17 victims wait outside Korporaal van Oudheusden barracks in Hilversum as hearses carrying the victims arrive
People wearing white clothes hold balloons during a silent march in memory of the victims of MH17
