The black boxes recovered from the crash of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine will be sent to British aviation investigators for analysis.

The decision by the Dutch-led team investigating the disaster came after pro-Russian rebels controlling the crash site handed the boxes over to Malaysian officials on Tuesday, after an intense international outcry.

Transport minister Liow Tiong Lai said in a statement late on Tuesday that it was normal procedure to send the boxes, which record cockpit activity and flight data, to the nearest laboratory approved by the United Nations aviation agency, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

“The international investigation team, led by the Netherlands, has decided to pass the black boxes to the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch for forensic analysis,” he said.

The boxes will be flown to Farnborough, England, accompanied by Malaysian officials and other members of the investigation team, Liow added.

All 298 people aboard MH17 were killed when it went down over crisis-hit eastern Ukraine on Thursday. The jet is believed to have been shot by a surface-to-air missile by separatists from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.