The aircraft involved, manufactured by Boeing in 1979, was a Boeing 737-2P6 registered as A4O-BK with serial number 21734 and line number 566. It was equipped with two Pratt & Whitney JT8D-15 engines.[2][3]
Crew and passengers
The flight's cockpit crew consisted of the following:[citation needed]
The cabin crew were of mixed nationalities, ranging from Filipino, Indian, Pakistani, and American; the sole Bahraini member, Hashim Sayed Abdullah, acted as a deputy purser and worked in the economy class cabin.[4] Two of the crew were from the United Kingdom;[5] one of them, Sally Anne Townsend, was a native of Peterborough, serving as chief purser on the flight.[citation needed]
There were 96 Pakistani nationals, many returning to jobs in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain after spending the Eid al Adha holiday with their families in Pakistan. There were also seven passengers from the United Kingdom, one from the United States, and one from Iran.[6][7][8]
Nationality
Passengers
Crew
Total
Bahrain
0
2
2
India
0
1
1
Iran
1
0
1
Oman
0
1
1
Pakistan
96
1
97
Philippines
0
1
1
United Kingdom
7
0
7
United States
1
1
2
Total (8 Nationalities)
105
7
112
Bombing
On 23 September 1983, while on approach to Abu Dhabi, the aircraft experienced an explosive detonation in the baggage compartment.[9] The aircraft did not break up mid-air, but a fire broke out immediately afterwards and the passengers are believed to have been killed instantly by asphyxiation.[4] As a result, the aircraft crashed into the desert near Jebel Ali, about 45 kilometres (28mi) northeast of Abu Dhabi. All 112 people on board, including 7 crew members and 105 passengers, were killed in the bombing.[7]
Investigation
An investigation was launched by the American National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). They released a 400-page report on their findings, which was not immediately published in the Persian Gulf region. The report was revealed in September 1987 by British politician Sir Dudley Smith, under pressure from the parents of Lyn Farthing, one of the two British flight attendants who perished in the crash.[citation needed]
The report included a description of the last moments in the cockpit, including a description of Omani Captain Saoud Al Kindy praying as the plane nose-dived into the desert.[4] The report mentioned that everything on board the flight was perfectly normal and voice transcripts showed the crew chatting among themselves. One asked the other if he was on duty the next day, to which he replied "No, I've got a day off tomorrow". That was followed by a sudden interruption and the recording showed the pilots making a frantic attempt to control the plane.[4]
The report indicated a bomb in the baggage hold as the primary cause of the accident, due to the following factors:[4]
A passenger who checked in baggage at Karachi but never boarded the plane.
The nature of injuries to passengers who were seated above the baggage hold.
A sudden interruption to an otherwise normally operating flight.
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