Lucky escape!

They had, however, purchased tickets and checked baggage, reports the Star Online, quoting Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, head of Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation.

Quoting him, it added, Malaysia Airlines had removed those passengers' baggage once it learned they had not boarded the plane, in keeping with standard procedure.

The Southeast Asian country’s online news portal, however, did not give any details of the five passengers.

The Malaysian jetliner has been missing since early hours on Saturday, with 239 people on board.