A young Dutchman apparently posted a picture of the downed Malaysian airliner on Facebook minutes before he boarded it, writing "If it should disappear, this is what it looks like".

Cor Pan put up the image in a light-hearted reference to the Malaysia Airlines flight that disappeared over the Indian Ocean in March.

A few hours later, flight MH17 also disappeared from radar screens as it came down in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew, on the way to Kuala Lumpur.

There has been no confirmation that Cor, from Volendam, 15 kilometres north of Amsterdam, was on board the Boeing 777.

However, the photo of the aircraft on the tarmac is tagged "near Schiphol Airport" and appears to have been taken from the gate as passengers waited to board.

 

The picture has been widely circulated online

Comments by Cor's friends on Facebook also seem to suggest he was on the doomed jet. Late on Thursday his picture had been shared more than 10,000 times on the social media site.

"This can't be true!" said Alicia de Boer.

Petra Bleeker posted a picture of Cor and his girlfriend Neeltje Tol on which she superimposed a white rose, signifying death. It was unclear whether Neeltje was also on the flight.

"Such a beautiful couple who have been taken from life. I wish you the best wherever you are" said Peter Bootsman.

Cor had earlier posted pictures of idyllic tropical beaches on his Facebook page, saying: "A few more days to wait yet ...".