To the Prime Minister, Hon Scott Morrison MP, Deputy Prime Minister Hon Michael McCormack MP, Hon Bill Shorten MP, Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Qantas Group Chairman, Mr. Richard Goyder, Qantas Board of Directors, CEO of Qantas, Mr. Alan Joyce, CEO of Airbus, Mr. Tom Enders, and Australia,

I have a question for you. Have you ever had your life in someone else’s hands? If you have, you will be able to empathise with the story I’m about to share and will understand why I feel so strongly about it.

If you haven’t, well imagine you are moments away from death, with no ability to save yourself and you are relying on someone else to save your life. How would you feel if your life was then given back to you because of that one person?

For me, I feel internally grateful and I literally owe my life to those three men who saved mine. I will be forever in debt to them.

My story? All happened on October 7, 2008, but I have been dealing with it ever since. I was a flight attendant and that very early morning we left Singapore on a Qantas flight to Perth - QF72, which if Googled will give you a lot of background on what happened.

Cruising over the Indian Ocean, I was at the time preparing the meal service, until the terror flight from hell.

Suddenly, I was on the roof of the aircraft, I could see the floor beneath me. Before I was given the opportunity to tell you this story, the plane took another nose dive straight into the ocean, heading to a horrific crash, but I’m here. On that day, we should have landed straight into the ocean. If it wasn’t for three men on that plane I wouldn’t be telling you this story.

How did this even happen? How does a plane suddenly fall from the sky? Well, that is a question I ask myself every day. However, what we should be asking is who saved the lives of 315 people?

Captain Kevin Sullivan and his flight crew First Officer Peter Lipsett and Second Officer Ross Hales are those three heroes, the ones who don’t wear masks. On that flight, as I was preparing the meals, Captain Sullivan and his team were flying holiday goers to or from their destination, businessmen who just signed a deal and the crew who were providing the service to all of those people, until it all went horribly wrong.

One of the planes autopilot systems disconnected, leaving Captain Sullivan to use his Navy training to save our lives, because the Qantas manual didn’t provide any guidance to the failures this plane was about to endure on the crew.

It was if this plane had a mind of its own, from simultaneous warning messages suggesting the plane was in a stall and over speed, which is impossible, to suddenly taking a nose dive towards the ocean.

With a G-force so intense, even the cockpit three-point safety harnesses were not enough to keep the pilots in their seats as Captain Sullivan pulled on the side stick to stop descending, but it was unresponsive.

Can you imagine this feeling? Having no control over whether you lived or died? With no idea why it was happening?

Just as the plane came back to normal function from descending unexpectedly, the plane took another sudden plunge towards the ocean.

Taking rapid action, Captain Sullivan used his military training and a manoeuvre he only knew from his time in the Navy, to recover the aircraft so skillfully and successfully landed the plane at Learmonth airport, on the North coast of Western Australia.

Now I’m alive today because of these three men, the three pilots who landed this plane safely in a situation that would have left most of us unable to process the events, Captain Kevin Sullivan, First Officer Peter Lipsett, and Second Officer Ross Hales.

So why am I telling you this story 10 years later? It was in the news and is still on the internet, but I haven’t gotten closure.

After this event not one of those three men were officially acknowledged and recognised for their heroism.

A prime example of honouring aviation bravery. In recognition of his heralded emergency landing on the Hudson River on January 15, 2009, Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 were awarded the National Air and Space Museum's highest honour: the 2010 Current Achievement Trophy, so why aren’t these men being honoured as they deserve?

These are the very people who we trust every day with our lives every time we hop onto that plane and yet not once have these particular men received any official public acknowledgment or recognition from either the Australian Prime Minister or Mr. Alan Joyce (CEO of Qantas Group) who I thought should have nominated his men in the first place, 10 years ago!

So my question is still why? Why did the Prime Minister respond to me with a letter suggesting I nominate these men for The Group Bravery Citation, an 18-month process and an award that doesn’t warrant the seriousness of the nature of the day on QF72?

In a country who ensures no one gets left behind, why has it taken more than 10 years to honour the men who saved the lives of 315 people by managing to land a plane which failed unexpectedly with no warning? Could you even begin to imagine being on that plane that day? Could you imagine sitting next to your loved one of that flight, looking into their eyes and saying goodbye with the thought that you are about to die one of the most horrific deaths?

What would have been the government and CEO of Qantas’ reaction that day if that plane didn’t land safely? Like AF447, MH17, MH370, and JT610, Australia would be a country in mourning. Mourning for loved ones, for Australians who never got to reach their full potential and mourning for the brand Qantas, who would have lost the trust of many travelers.

In the Prime Minister’s, reply to me last time, he stated that there are four levels of awards for individuals, as well as an award to recognise the bravery of a group of people involved in a single incident. The Group Bravery Citation is awarded for a collective act of bravery, by a group of persons in extraordinary circumstances, that is considered worthy of recognition. That there to me is like belittling these men. He talks a lot about recognising Australians of the Year for being worthy role models for the nation. But did you once stop to think about the group of people led by Captain Kevin Sullivan on the QF72 for their true acts of heroism in saving the lives of 315 passengers and crew?

Please answer me this, why are they not worthy of the Cross of Valour (CV) which is awarded "only for acts of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme peril?” With the five very deserving winners since 1975, I have no doubt these three pilots deserve to be honoured next to these very courageous and brave Australian’s. I know you would already know them, but I just want you to understand why I think these three men deserve this award.

Mr. Darrell Tree CV - amazing courage to attempt to save a crane driver and his son from electrocution.

Mr. Victor Boscoe CV - risked his life to pursue two armed men successfully after they fled a robbery.

Mr. Allan Sparkes CV - rescued a boy trapped in flooded an underground stormwater drain in a huge act of bravery.

Mr. Timothy Britten CV and Mr. Richard Joyes CV - placed their lives in danger to save others after the Bali bombings and rescued a badly injured woman.

All extremely deserving to be awarded this prestigious award of bravery and saved the lives of others. But it just makes me wonder, why Captain Kevin Sullivan, First Officer Peter Lipsett, and Second Officer Ross Hales have not been honoured with the same award. They saved 315 lives that day. They took on a plane that had a mind of its own and failed when it never should have failed. They made a split decision to go with their gut and follow a process they knew and it paid off.

If the definition of bravery is the quality or state of having or showing mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty, then why does the day QF72 not match this definition? Captain Kevin Sullivan, Peter Lipsett, and Ross Hales faced danger, fear, and difficulty to land that plane!

Do I need to explain this to you anymore?

I am completely at a loss as to how a horrific incident such as this could have been overlooked for a public acknowledgment for well over 10 years now.

I'm still alive and here today because of those three men. I am here to be with my family, to look after my daughter who on October 7, 2018 - 10 years from the day of QF72 - was hit and run over by a speeding motorist when she was crossing the road on her way home. My daughter requires around the clock care and I'm very thankful Captain Kevin Sullivan and his men gave me a second chance at life so I can be here for my daughter.

You know, I've been told many times from close family and friends to give up the fight and that I was wasting my time and to just focus all my energy on my daughter's well being, but I cannot and I will not. I owe it to these courageous men and no matter how long it takes I have a duty of care to ensure that these brave men are officially recognised for bringing 315 passengers and crew home alive to their loved ones and not in body bags. Every breath I take is because of these remarkable individuals. They are what TRUE HEROES are made of.

Before I end this letter I ask you all, The Prime Minister, the CEO of Qantas, Alan Joyce and the people of Australia to please, honour these men.

Think if it was your family on that plane, would you be fighting for the same thing?

Yours sincerely,

Fuzzy Maiava