Two families expressed gratitude this week after missing their flights on AirAsia QZ8501 on Sunday.
The Susanto and Cahyono families were scheduled to be onboard the doomed flight, but last minute changes spared their lives.
AirAsia QZ8501 was scheduled to depart from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, Indonesia at 7:30am local time, but the flight was moved to 5:20am. Ari Putro Cahyono and nine of his family members were supposed to be on the flight, but Cahyono did not read the email notifying him of the departure change.
He and his family arrived at the airport at 5:30am, just missing their flight. They were offered seats on the next plane to Singapore, but news of QZ8501's disappearance had already begun to spread.
"Me and my family then decided to cancel the trip," he told Kompas.com.
Flight QZ8501 disappeared about one hour into its trip to Singapore while flying over the Java Sea. Officials lost contact as the plane travelled between Belitung and Kalimantan, Indonesia with 162 people on board.
A husband and father of three thanked God that his family was not among that number, and explained that his sick father was the reason they were spared.
Chandra Susanto, his wife, Inge, and their three children, Christopher, 10, Nadine, 7, and Felix, 5, planned to fly from Indonesia to visit Susanto's father when they received disappointing news.
"My father became ill so we had to cancel our flight," Susanto told Daily Mail Australia. "We had been planning our holiday to Singapore since March 2014 so it was a great surprise for us when we canceled our holiday yesterday."
Susanto's sister phoned to check on him after learning of Flight QZ8501's loss. It was then that the man learned of his family's good fortune.
"I am very thankful to God for his mercy for me and my family," he shared. "But I am so sad and very sorry for the people on the plane.
"They were just travelling to Singapore, maybe with their family, maybe for a holiday. And now they are lost," he continued. "Our lives have changed. We are so grateful. We have an opportunity to be the best people we can and to help others. We are so thankful to God."
Two oil slicks were spotted in the search for the missing plane, but no other evidence or debris from a crash have been discovered. Search and rescue agency chief Bambang Soelistyo stated that the plane most likely rests at the bottom of the sea.
