“God Is Saving and Protecting Us” –Passenger Who Skipped Doomed Flight

Sunday evening, Inge Goreti Ferdiningsih and her family went to church to give thanks for the gift of life.

Nine months earlier, Goreti and her husband, Chandra Susanto, had booked a family vacation for the couple and their children Christopher 10, Nadine, 7, and Felix, 5.   The family planned to travel to Singapore, where they would take a trip aboard a local cruise ship, splash at a water park, and watch the animals perform at Sea World.  

But then Chandra’s father was hospitalized with hepatitis.  Although they knew the children would be greatly disappointed, they felt that they should be with his dad.  On Saturday–one day before they were scheduled to depart–they cancelled the trip.

Goreti, her husband and children had been scheduled to fly aboard AirAsia Flight QZ8501, which crashed into the Java Sea, leaving no survivors.  CNN reported her reaction:

“We are extremely grateful, and God is really great…. I believe that God is saving and protecting us, and this is truly a miracle.”

Chandra Susanto told the Daily Mail:

“I am very thankful to God for his mercy for me and my family. But I am so sad and very sorry for the people on the plane. 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.”