Two things I think: 1. Almost everyone has an intrinsic fear of flying and any accidents in the air hit that nerve. 2. Everybody knows that living in a war zo

Two things I think: 1. Almost everyone has an intrinsic fear of flying and any accidents in the air hit that nerve. 2. Everybody knows that living in a war zone is dangerous. Conversely, you know whether you're living in a war zone or not, so most people don't see deaths in war zones as related to their everyday lives. However, in this case, these people were on a flight between Amsterdam and Malaysia. They weren't involved in a war in any way. So that really hits a nerve. You can image yourself in their place.