KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 10 — Flying into remote Sarawak was part of the routine for five people aboard a Flying Doctor Service (FDS) helicopter that crashed on Tuesday in a tragedy that captured national attention.
Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham had flown FDS missions before. So had the four health care workers from the Ministry of Health (MOH) travelling with him: medical officer Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, assistant medical officer Alexson Adit Henry, staff nurse Debra Moset, and staff nurse Jessie Paya Jok.
They were travelling from Miri to Long Lellang as they had done on previous FDS missions, bringing health care to communities in remote parts of Sarawak.
But on Tuesday, the BO-105 helicopter (9M-LLF) carrying them crashed and caught fire near the Long Lellang STOLport in Ulu Baram.
All five died.
Sarawak police commissioner Mohamad Zainal Abdullah said in a statement yesterday that the helicopter departed Miri at 10.21am on September 8 and landed in Ba’Lai at 11.39am to carry out FDS duties. It later departed for Long Siut, Selungo, at 1.41pm, landing there nine minutes later to refuel.
At about 3.21pm, the helicopter was believed to have crashed while attempting to land at the Long Lellang airstrip, coming down at the end of the runway.
The helicopter was headed to Long Lellang to spend the night before continuing to Tanjong Durian for another FDS assignment on September 9.
Mohamad Zainal said the BO 105 S (CBS 5) helicopter carrying the five people was manufactured in Germany in 1991 and had been used to transport Ministry of Health (MOH) personnel in Sarawak since 2009. Over 17 years, it supported health care services in several parts of the state, including Miri, Bintulu, Limbang, Marudi and Bario.
Zainol and Dr Ainul were Muslims, whereas Alexson, Debra, and Jessie were Sarawakian Christians.
Accounts from their families, friends and colleagues reveal who they were: a father, a daughter, a mother, a friend, and health workers who dedicated their lives to serving others.
A woman wrote on Threads that Zainol was her pilot during her first time flying Medevac (medical evacuation) to Bario, Sarawak, early this year. Jessie was one of her colleagues at Klinik Kesihatan Tudan (“she always smileee at me”) and Alexson spoke to her a month ago, asking for her Medevac flight status from Layang Layang to Long Jekitan.
Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 30, Senawang (Negeri Sembilan)
Zainol was a 30-year-old pilot from Senawang, Negeri Sembilan. He was a husband and father to two young children aged six and 10 months, and the fourth of 12 siblings.
Tributes from his family, friends, colleagues and people who had flown with him described him as kind, friendly and humble, with a ready smile.
One Threads user, @azrmhdzn, a former colleague from Zainol’s time with Subang-based civil aviation company AFJets Sdn Bhd, recalled that he was also skilled at woodworking. He made chairs, tables, picture frames and other wooden items, describing his work as “very meticulous and beautifully made”.
Zainol trained at Asia Pacific Flight Training (APFT) in Kota Bharu, Kelantan.
In 2022, he flew Pakatan Harapan Tambun candidate Anwar Ibrahim during the 15th general election campaign, according to former crew member @amiruladnans, who shared the memory on Threads.
Four years later, Anwar, now the prime minister, was among those paying tribute to Zainol after his death.
In a tribute yesterday, Anwar said he had called Zainol’s father, Bee Sham Ahmad, to offer his condolences to the family. Recalling Zainol flying him during the GE15 campaign, Anwar said he was saddened by his death, particularly by the loss suffered by his family and two young children.
Anwar also said the government would provide appropriate assistance to Zainol’s family and the families of other victims.
Zainol’s father, Bee Sham Ahmad, told Bernama that the family last saw Zainol during the Negeri Sembilan state election, when the pilot took a week’s leave to return home to vote before going back to Miri.
On the night before the crash, Zainol spoke to his mother, Zaiton Muda, in a video call that lasted more than an hour. It was the family’s last conversation with him.
Tributes posted on social media also suggest that Zainol had considerable experience flying FDS missions.
Threads user @fikri_azizan recalled being flown by Zainol in Limbang in 2024, while another user, @ami_rah_97, said Zainol Afiq had flown her on an FDS mission just two weeks before the crash. Both recalled positive experiences with him.
Threads user @_.aimnsuhaimi, who appears to be Zainol’s sister-in-law, brought to light an emergency landing he made in August last year at a water treatment plant in Miri because of bad weather.
The flight was transporting a patient from Long Jeeh Health Clinic in Baram to Miri Hospital when the aircraft encountered strong winds and heavy rain. No health personnel or the patient were injured in the emergency landing.
For Zainol, flying into remote parts of Sarawak had become part of his work. The flight to Long Lellang on Tuesday was another such mission.
Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, 33, Kota Bharu (Kelantan)
Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin was a 33-year-old medical officer from Kelantan.
She graduated from Universitas Hasanuddin in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, and was most recently listed in the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) Merits registry as practising at the Miri district health office.
Her father, Kamaruddin Salleh, told Sinar Harian that Dr Ainul had recently shared her plans to further her studies and become a specialist doctor.
She had hoped to pursue postgraduate studies at Universiti Sains Malaysia’s (USM) Kubang Kerian campus and eventually return to Kelantan to serve patients there.
“We were happy when we learned of her plan to further her studies as a specialist doctor at USM Kubang Kerian. If successful, she could return to serve in Kelantan,” Kamaruddin was quoted as saying.
Kamaruddin and Dr Ainul’s mother, Rogayah Mohd Noor, are both retired teachers who live in Kampung Baung, Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu.
Dr Ainul was the fourth of five siblings and had been married to Muhammad Faiz Abdul Malik, 37, for three years.
Kamaruddin said Dr Ainul never complained during her two years serving in Miri, despite having to travel by helicopter to remote areas to provide medical care.
He described his daughter as someone who was not afraid of travelling by helicopter and remained enthusiastic about working in remote areas.
“She was brave, she said it was for serving patients. That was Dr Ainul, she was passionate,” he said.
Kelantan Menteri Besar Mohd Nassuruddin Daud said Dr Ainul had dedicated her knowledge and service to helping people in remote areas, describing her death as a loss to Kelantan, which had lost one of its own while she was serving far from home.
Alexson Adit Henry, 31, Miri (Sarawak)
Alexson Adit Henry was an assistant medical officer at the Miri district health office. He left behind a five-year-old daughter and two-year-old son.
The 31-year-old studied at UiTM Samarahan before continuing his training at Kolej Sains Kesihatan Bersekutu Kuching to become a medical assistant, graduating with an advanced diploma just last month.
He then undertook Open University Malaysia’s Bachelor of Medical and Health Sciences (BMHS) with Honours, a three-year, six-month programme that provides higher qualifications for assistant medical officers. The university posted condolences to Alexson as a Semester 1 student.
In a Threads post following the crash, his widow Stephanie Essah appealed for her husband to be brought home, saying their daughter was still asking when her father would return.
“My daughter who is five years old asked me: ‘Mommy, daddy will come back, right, mommy?’” she wrote. “Please bring my husband home. My children and I still need him.”
This morning, Stephanie said she was facing the lowest point of her life, writing: “Can you come back again to me sayangg? I rinduuu dahhh.”
Alexson’s sister @ann_hny, posted on Threads that joining the FDS team was Alexson’s greatest achievement. “You sacrificed your family time to serve the community”. In response, a man who said he knew Stephanie wrote that he wasn’t close to Adit, “but I’ve met him once before during his wedding and from there, I knew he was such a good man”.
Debra Moset, 40, Miri (Sarawak)
Debra Moset was a 40-year-old staff nurse, who was married and a mother of three children.
She was stationed in Miri and would return to her family home in Kampung Semadang, about an hour and a half from Kuching, whenever she had time off.
Her younger brother, Morgan Moset, told The Borneo Post that the two had been close since childhood, with only a year between them. They attended the same school, grew up together, and spent much of their childhood playing and eating together.
Debra’s most recent visit home was last month, when she stayed for about a week. Morgan said she spent her time with the family chatting, joking and cooking, with beef rendang among her specialities.
Morgan said the family would always look forward to Debra coming home, both for her cooking and the time they could spend together.
Following the crash, Morgan said he could not bring himself to believe that Debra was aboard the helicopter and continued to hold on to hope that she was still alive.
The family struggled to obtain information about the crash because poor telecommunications coverage in their area made it difficult to follow developments. A telecommunications tower in the area had caught fire last year, further affecting connectivity.
A woman named Christina Evirra posted a video of herself with “bestie” Debra eating “delicious” pork on a stick.
“I still can’t believe you’re gone. Thank you for all the memories, laughter, and beautiful moments we shared. You may no longer be here with us, but you will always have a special place in my heart. Fly high, bestie,” wrote Christina.
Christina also paid tribute to Jessie, who was her friend too, posting a video of Jessie praying for her on her birthday seven years ago.
Jessie Paya Jok, 44, Miri (Sarawak)
Staff nurse Jessie Paya Jok was a wife and mother of two children. She went by her nickname Paya and was remembered by friends and former colleagues as quiet, cheerful and kind-hearted, with a trademark smile.
Caroline Sawai Joseph Chungat, who had known Jessie since they trained as community nurses at the Ministry of Health Training Institute (ILKKM) in Serian in 2005, said Jessie never raised her voice or became angry in the 21 years they knew each other.
After completing their training, the two served at Bario Health Clinic, where Jessie was well-liked by the local community, The Borneo Post reported.
Caroline recalled an occasion when Jessie paid for a patient’s fare from Bario to Miri out of her own pocket so the patient could seek further treatment.
She described Jessie as dedicated to her work and someone who never complained despite being given demanding duties.
Jessie had also planned to pursue an advanced diploma next year, an aspiration she shared with Caroline shortly before her death.
“She did not get the chance to fulfil it. That was one of the last dreams she told me about,” Caroline said.
Outside work, Jessie was a wife and mother who was known among her friends for her generosity. Caroline said Jessie would make sure her friends had eaten before eating herself.
Another longtime friend, Olivia Ngau, described Jessie as friendly, approachable and kind-hearted, with her smile standing out among their friends.
The same qualities were remembered by people she had cared for.
One Facebook user, who recognised Jessie from a friend’s tribute, recalled encountering her while bringing her children for follow-up appointments at Tudan Polyclinic’s maternal and child health clinic.
The woman described Jessie as “soft-spoken, cheerful and never moody”, and said Jessie had cared for her during both of her pregnancies and checked on her first and second children.
Friends who worked alongside Jessie also remembered her as someone who was easy to work with and serious about her responsibilities.
