AMSTERDAM - Malaysian Airlines will be issuing a cash payment of US$5,000 (S$6,210) per passenger on MH17 to cover the initial expenses of next of kin currently awaiting news in a hotel in Amsterdam.

The airline is also aiming to take families to visit the crash site in eastern Ukraine, Vice President of MAS Europe Huib Gorter told a news conference on Friday.

"We are working to see whether that is feasible," he was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Defending the clean bill of health of the MAS jet that crashed over eastern Ukraine on Thursday, he said: "The aircraft was manufactured in 1997 and had 17 years of service ... all communication systems on the aircraft were functioning."

He said contact was lost on Thursday at 1415 GMT.