TWA Flight 840 bombing

Last updated
TWA Flight 840
Boeing 727-231-Adv, Trans World Airlines - TWA AN1121365.jpg
The aircraft involved in the incident, seen in 1997
Bombing
DateApril 2, 1986
SummaryBombing
Site Argos, Greece
Aircraft
Aircraft type Boeing 727-231
Operator Trans World Airlines
Registration N54340 [1]
Flight origin Los Angeles International Airport
1st stopover John F. Kennedy International Airport
2nd stopover Leonardo da Vinci Int'l Airport
3rd stopover Athens (Ellinikon) Int'l Airport
Destination Cairo International Airport
Passengers115 [2]
Crew7 [2]
Fatalities4
Injuries7 [3]
Survivors118 [2]

Trans World Airlines Flight 840 was a regularly scheduled international flight from Los Angeles to Cairo via New York City, Rome, and Athens on April 2, 1986. About 20 minutes before landing in Athens, a bomb was detonated on the aircraft while it was over Argos, Greece, blasting a hole in the plane's starboard side. Four passengers died after being blown out, while another seven were injured by flying shrapnel and debris. The dead were identified as Alberto Ospino, a Colombian-born American from Stratford, Conn.; Demetra Stylian, 52; her daughter, Maria Klug, 25, and her granddaughter, Demetra, 18 months old, all from Annapolis, Md.[ citation needed ] The aircraft then made a successful emergency landing with no further loss of life. [4]

Contents

Aircraft

The Boeing 727-231 involved in the incident was delivered to TWA in 1974, with the registration N54340. [5] [6] It was fitted with 3 P&W JT8D-5 turbofan engines. [5]

Flight

The flight originated in Los Angeles on a Boeing 747 and transferred to a Boeing 727 in Rome for the remainder of the flight. [7] After taking off from Rome, Italy, the flight remained uneventful until around 20 minutes before landing at Athens, when the aircraft was at around 11,000 feet (3,400 m). [8] A bomb hidden underneath seat 10F during an earlier leg of the flight detonated, blasting a hole in the starboard side of the fuselage in front of the wing. [7]

Four American passengers, including an eight-month-old infant, were ejected through the hole to their deaths below. The victims were identified as a Colombian-American man; and a woman, her daughter, and her infant granddaughter. [7] Seven others on the aircraft were injured by shrapnel as the cabin suffered a rapid decompression. However, as the aircraft was in the middle of its approach to Athens, the explosion was not as catastrophic as it would have been at a higher altitude. [7] The remaining 110 passengers survived the incident as pilot Richard "Pete" Petersen made an emergency landing. [7]

Aftermath

The bodies of three of the four victims were later recovered from an unused Greek Air Force landing strip near Argos; the fourth was found in the sea. [7]

A group calling itself the Arab Revolutionary Cells claimed responsibility, saying it was committed in retaliation for American imperialism and clashes with Libya in the Gulf of Sidra the week before. [9]

The aircraft was substantially damaged but was repaired and returned to service until TWA ceased operations in 2001. The aircraft was scrapped in 2002. [10]

Investigation

Investigators concluded that the bomb contained one pound of plastic explosive. As the bomb was placed on the floor of the cabin, the explosion tore a hole downward, where the fuselage absorbed the most damage. It is suspected it had been placed beneath the seat on a previous journey by a Lebanese woman (later arrested, never convicted) who worked for the Abu Nidal Organisation, which was dedicated to the destruction of the state of Israel. [11] They had previously hijacked and bombed several other aircraft, as well as committing various terrorist attacks in parts of the Middle East. [12]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saudia</span> Flag carrier of Saudi Arabia; based in Jeddah

Saudia, formerly known as Saudi Arabian Airlines, is the flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, based in Jeddah. The airline's main hubs are the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, the latter of which it plans to move out of by 2030.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trans World Airlines</span> US airline (1930–2003) that merged into American

Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with Ford Trimotors. With American, United, and Eastern, it was one of the "Big Four" domestic airlines in the United States formed by the Spoils Conference of 1930.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1983.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1985.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippine Airlines Flight 434</span> Flight on December 11, 1994 that was damaged by a bomb

Philippine Airlines Flight 434, sometimes referred to as PAL434 or PR434, was a scheduled flight on December 11, 1994, from Manila to Tokyo with a quick stopover in Cebu on a Boeing 747-283B that was seriously damaged by a bomb, killing one passenger and damaging vital control systems, although the plane was in a repairable state. The bombing was a test run of the unsuccessful Bojinka terrorist attacks. The Boeing 747 was flying the second leg of a route from Mactan–Cebu International Airport in Cebu, Philippines to Narita International Airport, in Tokyo, Japan. After the bomb detonated, 58-year-old veteran pilot Captain Eduardo "Ed" Reyes was able to land the aircraft, saving it and the remaining passengers and crew.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TWA Flight 847</span> 1985 aircraft hijacking

TWA Flight 847 was a regularly scheduled Trans World Airlines flight from Cairo to San Diego with en route stops in Athens, Rome, Boston, and Los Angeles. On the morning of June 14, 1985, Flight 847 was hijacked soon after take off from Athens. The hijackers demanded the release of 700 Shia Muslims from Israeli custody and took the plane repeatedly to Beirut and Algiers. Later Western analysis considered them members of the Hezbollah group, an allegation Hezbollah rejects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Airlines Flight 444</span> Attempted bombing of flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C.

American Airlines Flight 444 was a scheduled American Airlines flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C.'s National Airport. On November 15, 1979, the Boeing 727 serving the flight was attacked by Ted Kaczynski, who sent a pipe bomb in the mail and set it to detonate at a certain altitude. The bomb partially detonated in the cargo hold and caused "a sucking explosion and a loss of pressure," which was then followed by large quantities of smoke filling the passenger cabin, forcing the pilots to make an emergency landing at Dulles International Airport. Twelve passengers had to be treated afterward for smoke inhalation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mexicana de Aviación Flight 940</span> 1986 aviation accident

Mexicana de Aviación Flight 940, operated by Mexicana de Aviación, was a scheduled international flight from Mexico City to Los Angeles with stopovers in Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlán on March 31, 1986, utilizing a Boeing 727-200 registered as XA-MEM, when the plane crashed into El Carbón, a mountain in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range northwest of Mexico City, killing everyone on board. With 167 deaths, the crash of Flight 940 is the deadliest aviation disaster ever on Mexican soil, and the deadliest involving a Boeing 727.

The article describes accidents and incidents on Korean Air and its predecessor companies Korean National Airlines and Korean Air Lines.

On September 8, 1974, a Boeing 707-331B operating as TWA Flight 841 from Tel Aviv to New York City via Athens and Rome crashed into the Ionian Sea, killing all aboard. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the plane had been destroyed by a bomb hidden in the cargo hold. The detonation of the bomb destroyed the systems responsible for operating the plane's control surfaces, causing the plane to pitch up until it stalled and dove into the sea.

References

  1. "FAA Registry (N54340)". Federal Aviation Administration.
  2. 1 2 3 Smith, William E.; Borrell, John; Gondicas, Mirka (1986-04-14). "Terrorism Explosion on Flight 840". Time. Archived from the original on May 10, 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  3. "On This Day - 1986: Bomb tears hole in airliner over Greece". BBC News. BBC. 1986-04-02. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  4. "TWA Pilot's Wife Says Her Husband is a Hero With PM-Plane-Bomb Bjt". AP News. Associated Press. 3 April 1986. Archived from the original on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Aircraft N54340 Data" . Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  6. "FAA Registry". Archived from the original on 2 April 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Suro, Roberto (1986-04-03). "4 killed as bomb rips T.W.A plane on way to Athens". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2 April 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  8. "TWA bombing survivor and author tells stories of second chances". 26 June 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  9. "Bomb Blast On Airliner Kills 4 Jet Lands Safely In Greece". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
  10. Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 727-231 N54340 Argos". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
  11. "Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)". mackenzieinstitute.com. 11 December 2015. Archived from the original on 13 July 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  12. "Abu Nidal Organization (ANO) attacked Airports & Airlines target (Apr. 2, 1986, Italy)". MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base . April 3, 2001. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved August 26, 2012.