Sabena Flight 571

Last updated

Sabena Flight 571
Sabena Flight 571. I.jpg
Israeli soldiers rescuing hostages on the plane
Hijacking
Date8 May 1972
Summary Hijacking
Site Tel Aviv-Lod International Airport, Lod, Israel
32°00′34″N34°52′37″E / 32.0094°N 34.8769°E / 32.0094; 34.8769
Aircraft
Aircraft type Boeing 707-329C [lower-alpha 1]
Operator Sabena
Registration OO-SJG
Flight origin Brussels Airport, Brussels, Belgium
Stopover Vienna International Airport, Vienna, Austria
Destination Lod Airport, Tel Aviv, Israel
Passengers94 (inc. 4 hijackers)
Crew7
Fatalities3 (1 passenger, 2 hijackers)
Injuries3 (2 passengers, 1 commando)
Survivors98 (inc. 2 hijackers)

Sabena Flight 571 was a scheduled passenger flight from Brussels to Tel Aviv via Vienna, operated by the Belgian national airline, Sabena. On 8 May 1972 a Boeing 707 passenger aircraft operating that service, captained by British pilot Reginald Levy, DFC, [1] was hijacked by four members of the Black September Organization, a Palestinian terrorist group. Following their instructions, Captain Levy landed the plane at Lod Airport (later Ben Gurion International Airport). [1] The hijackers demanded that Israel release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostages. The standoff was ended by an Israeli commando raid in which all of the hijackers were killed or captured.

Contents

Hijacking

The attack, planned by Ali Hassan Salameh, was carried out by a group of two men and two women who pretended to be two couples: the group's leader Ali Taha Abu Snina, plus Abed al-Aziz Atrash, Rima Tannous and Theresa Halsa. [2] They were armed with two handguns, two hand grenades and two belts of explosives. Twenty minutes out of Vienna, the hijackers entered the cockpit. "As you can see," Captain Levy told the 90 passengers, "we have friends aboard." He concealed from the hijackers that his wife was a passenger on the plane, traveling with him to celebrate his birthday in Tel Aviv. [2]

Soon after taking command, the hijackers separated the Jewish hostages from the others and sent them to the back of the aircraft. [3] When the plane had landed, the hijackers demanded the release of 315 convicted Palestinian terrorists [4] imprisoned in Israel, and threatened to blow up the airplane with its passengers. Captain Levy managed to send the Israelis a coded message requesting help. Defense Minister Moshe Dayan and Transport Minister Shimon Peres, who would become Prime Minister and later President of Israel, conducted negotiations with the hijackers while preparing a rescue operation, code-named "Operation Isotope." [5] Captain Levy said he talked to the hijackers about everything "from navigation to sex" while the passengers and crew waited to be rescued. [6]

On 9 May 1972 at 4:00 p.m. the rescue operation began: a team of 16 Sayeret Matkal commandos, led by Ehud Barak [1] and including Benjamin Netanyahu, [1] both future Israeli Prime Ministers, approached the aircraft [7] disguised as aircraft technicians in white coveralls. [1] Having immobilized it during the preceding night by deflating some of the landing gear tires, they convinced the hijackers that its hydraulic system needed repair. They then stormed the aircraft, [2] killing both male hijackers within two minutes. [8] They also captured the two female hijackers [1] and rescued all 90 remaining passengers. Three passengers were wounded in the exchange of fire, one of whom later died of her injuries. Netanyahu was also wounded during the rescue when another commando, Marko Ashkenazi, accidentally discharged his gun as he used it to hit Theresa Halsa. The bullet passed through her and penetrated Netanyahu's bicep. [2]

Aftermath

Halsa and Rima Tannous were eventually sentenced to life imprisonment—Halsa for 220 years. [2] They were freed in November 1983, in a prisoner exchange after the 1982 Lebanon War. [2]

Sabena continued to operate the aircraft for another five years, until it was purchased by Israel Aircraft Industries. It was eventually sold to the Israeli Air Force, and served as a spy plane for many years, participating in most of the Air Force's long-range operations. [9] [10]

Captain Levy, a Royal Air Force veteran who took part in strategic bombing missions over Germany during World War II [1] and also in the Berlin airlift, [1] had joined Sabena in 1952. [1] He retired in 1982 [1] and died of a heart attack, at a hospital near his home in Dover on 1 August 2010. [1] The hijacking took place on his 50th birthday. [1]

The incident aircraft at Heathrow on 7 June 1976 Boeing 707-329, Sabena AN1811357.jpg
The incident aircraft at Heathrow on 7 June 1976

In media

Related Research Articles

The Black September Organization (BSO) was a Palestinian militant organization founded in 1970. Besides other actions, the group was responsible for the assassination of the Jordanian Prime Minister Wasfi Tal, and the Munich massacre, in which eleven Israeli athletes and officials were kidnapped and killed, as well as a West German policeman dying, during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, their most publicized event. These attacks led to the creation or specialization of permanent counter-terrorism forces in many European countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Entebbe raid</span> 1976 Israeli counter-terrorist operation

The Entebbe raid or Operation Entebbe, officially codenamed Operation Thunderbolt, was a 1976 Israeli counter-terrorist mission in Uganda. It was launched in response to the hijacking of an international civilian passenger flight operated by Air France between the cities of Tel Aviv and Paris. During a stopover in Athens, the aircraft was hijacked by two Palestinian PFLP–EO terrorists and two German RZ terrorists, who diverted the flight to Libya and then to Uganda, where they landed at Entebbe International Airport to be joined by other terrorists. Once in Uganda, the group enjoyed support from Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.

EL AL Israel Airlines Ltd., trading as EL AL, is an Israeli airline and the nation’s flag carrier. Since its inaugural flight from Geneva to Tel Aviv in September 1948, the airline has grown to serve almost 50 destinations, operating scheduled domestic and international services and cargo flights within Israel, and to Europe, the Middle East, the Americas, Africa, and the Far East, from its main base in Ben Gurion Airport.

Unit 777, also known as Task Force 777, is a tier one special forces in the Egyptian Army, falling under the El-Sa'ka Force. They specializes in black operations, commando style raids, counterterrorism, executive protection, hostage rescue, irregular warfare, manhunting, and special operations in behind enemy lines. It was created in 1978 by the government of Anwar Sadat in response to concerns of increased terrorist activity following the expulsion of Soviet military advisors from the country by Sadat and his efforts to achieve peace with Israel.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawson's Field hijackings</span> 1970 Palestinian militant plane hijackings

In September 1970, members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) hijacked four airliners bound for New York City and one for London. Three aircraft were forced to land at Dawson's Field, a remote desert airstrip near Zarqa, Jordan, formerly Royal Air Force Station Zarqa, which then became PFLP's "Revolutionary Airport". By the end of the incident, one hijacker had been killed and one injury reported. This was the second instance of mass aircraft hijacking, after an escape from communist Czechoslovakia in 1950.

In December 1973, a terrorist group executed a series of attacks originating at Rome-Fiumicino Airport in Italy which resulted in the deaths of 34 people. The attacks began with an airport-terminal invasion and hostage-taking, followed by the firebombing of a Pan Am aircraft and the hijacking of a Lufthansa flight.

<i>The Delta Force</i> 1986 film by Menahem Golan

The Delta Force is a 1986 American action film starring Chuck Norris and Lee Marvin as leaders of an elite group of Special Operations Forces personnel based on the real life U.S. Army Delta Force unit. Directed, co-written and co-produced by Menahem Golan, the film features Martin Balsam, Joey Bishop, Robert Vaughn, Steve James, Robert Forster, Shelley Winters, George Kennedy, and an uncredited Liam Neeson in an early role. It is the first installment in The Delta Force film series. Two sequels were produced, entitled Delta Force 2: The Colombian Connection and the direct-to-video Delta Force 3: The Killing Game. The Delta Force was "inspired" by the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lufthansa Flight 181</span> 1977 aircraft hijacking

Lufthansa Flight 181 was a Boeing 737-230C jetliner named Landshut that was hijacked on 13 October 1977 by four members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, who called themselves Commando Martyr Halima. The objective of the hijacking was to secure the release of imprisoned Red Army Faction leaders in German prisons. In the early hours of 18 October, just after midnight, the West German counter-terrorism group GSG 9, backed by the Somali Armed Forces, stormed the aircraft in Mogadishu, Somalia, with 86 passengers and four of the total five crew rescued. The rescue operation was codenamed Feuerzauber. The hijacking is considered to be part of the German Autumn. 3 hijackers and the captain were killed.

<i>Raid on Entebbe</i> (film) 1977 American television movie

Raid on Entebbe is a 1977 NBC television film directed by Irvin Kershner. It is based on the Entebbe raid, an Israeli military operation to free hostages at Entebbe Airport in Uganda, on July 4, 1976. The portrayal of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was Peter Finch's final performance; he died five days after the film's release.

<i>Operation Thunderbolt</i> (film) 1979 Israeli film

Operation Thunderbolt, known in Israel as Mivtsa Yonatan, also called Entebbe: Operation Thunderbolt in the US, is a 1977 Israeli film directed and co-written by Menahem Golan and starring Klaus Kinski, Yehoram Gaon and Sybil Danning. The film is based on an actual event – the hijacking of a flight by terrorists and the freeing of Israeli hostages on July 4, 1976. The operation was known as at Entebbe Airport in Uganda. Operation Thunderbolt follows the events following the flight's takeoff until the hostages' return to Israel. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Jews in Uganda</span>

The history of the Jews in Uganda is connected to some local tribes who have converted to Judaism, such as the Abayudaya, down to the twentieth century when Uganda under British control was offered to the Jews of the world as a "Jewish homeland" under the British Uganda Programme known as the "Uganda Plan" and culminating with the troubled relationship between Ugandan leader Idi Amin with Israel that ended with Operation Entebbe known as the "Entebbe Rescue" or "Entebbe Raid" of 1976.

Events in the year 1976 in Israel.

Events in the year 1968 in Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lufthansa Flight 649</span> 1972 aircraft hijacking

The hijacking of Lufthansa Flight 649 was an aircraft hijacking that took place between 22 and 23 February 1972. Eventually, all hostages on board the seized Boeing 747-230B were released when the West German government paid a ransom of US$5 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EgyptAir Flight 321</span> 1976 aircraft hijacking

EgyptAir Flight 321 was a Cairo-Luxor Egyptian flight which was hijacked by three armed terrorists claiming to be from the Abd Al-Nasir Movement. After hijacking the aircraft, the terrorists demanded to be flown to Libya. The terrorists agreed to land in Luxor instead, after being persuaded that the aircraft needed to be refuelled. In Luxor, Sa'ka Forces stormed the aircraft and captured the hijackers. No passengers were injured during the operation. The terrorists were convicted and sentenced to hard labor for life.

<i>Entebbe</i> (film) 2018 film by José Padilha

Entebbe is a 2018 action thriller film directed by José Padilha and written by Gregory Burke. The film recounts the story of the Entebbe raid, a 1976 counter-terrorist hostage-rescue operation, and stars Rosamund Pike and Daniel Brühl.

The 1973 Hellinikon International Airport attack was an attack at the Hellinikon International Airport at Athens, Greece. The two attackers were members of the Palestinian militant organization Black September. The militants used sub-machine guns and grenades against the passengers waiting in the passenger lounge. The attackers took hostages before they finally surrendered to the Greek police. It is believed that the gunmen wanted to hijack a plane, but they decided to attack when they were about to be searched by a Greek security inspector before boarding.

References

  1. The aircraft was a Boeing 707-320C model. Boeing used customer codes to identify the original customer for each airframe from 1958 until 2016. 29 is the code for Sabena, hence the designation 707-329C.
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Hevesi, Dennis (5 August 2010). "Reginald Levy Is Dead at 88; Hailed as a Hero in a '72 Hijacking". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jeffries, Stuart (11 November 2015). "Four hijackers and three Israeli PMs: the incredible story of Sabena flight 571". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  3. "Two Passengers on Hijacked Plane Seriously Wounded; Terrorists Separate Jews from Non-jews on Plane". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 11 May 1972. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
  4. Klein, Aaron J. (2005). Striking Back: The 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and Israel's Deadly Response . New York: Random House. p.  16. ISBN   1-920769-80-3.
  5. Judah Ari Gross (13 August 2015). "When the prime ministers took down the hijackers". The Times of Israel . Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  6. "Pilot's Story: Terrorists Didn't Know His Wife Was Passenger on Plane". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 11 May 1972. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  7. Sontag, Deborah (20 April 1999). "2 Who Share a Past Are Rivals for Israel's Future". The New York Times . pp. Section A, Page 3, Column 1.
  8. Fountain, Nigel (23 August 2010). "Reginal Levy obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  9. "Operation Isotope". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  10. "באר שבע – ה'בואינג' שנחטף בדרך לחצרים" [Be'er Sheva – a Boeing hijacked on the way to the premises]. Mynet (in Hebrew). Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 July 2021.