Ukrainian authorities has closed all of the Eastern Ukrainian air space since the Malaysian flight crash, Eurocontrol, a European civil organisation working for the safety of air navigation, said in a statement on Thursday.

Eurocontrol, based in Brussels, said it was informed that MH 17 en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur has crashed in the eastern part of Ukraine.

"According to our information, the aircraft was flying at Flight Level 330 (approximately 10,000 metres/33,000 feet) when it disappeared from the radar," Eurocontrol said, adding that "this route had been closed by the Ukrainian authorities from ground to flight level 320 but was open at the level at which the aircraft was flying."

It said that, since the crash, the Ukrainian authorities have informed Eurocontrol of the closure of routes from the ground to unlimited in Eastern Ukraine (Dnipropetrovsk Flight Information Region). The routes will remain closed until further notice.

"The European Aviation Crisis Coordination Cell is being activated to coordinate the response to the impact of the airspace closure," Eurocontrol said.

Eurocontrol was founded in 1960 and composed of around 40 Member States from the European region.