She hopes that, in speaking out, "we can all connect through our survival stories and form a fabric of power and strength going forward". The Pan Am Flight 73 on its way from Mumbai to New York via Karachi and Frankfurt was . Had they not, the terrorists would have taken the flight somewhere and blown up the aircraft. He said of a family of four sitting across the aisle from him: Two of them were killed and the others were wounded.. Still wearing the looks of terror, and in some cases their bloodied clothes and bandages, Southern California survivors of the hijacking of Pan American Flight 73 began coming home Monday. He also recommended that the Bureau of Prisons assign the defendant to the Administrative Maximum facility in Florence, Colorado, also referred to as "SuperMax. This was given to the 40-odd American passengers of the ill-fated Pan Am Flight 73, but not shared with the Indians, including the kin . Sign up for our newsletter and other special offers: Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall Turns 75! Anyone with information in the case is asked to contact the FBI or submit a tip at https://tips.fbi.gov. Sunshine and Dilip were also on the wing, but in the darkness couldn't gauge the distance of the drop. Chandigarh-born Bhanot was the senior flight purser on Pan Am Flight 73 hijacked in Karachi in 1986. But a New York law firm is trying to wrest 90 percent of the settlement away from Dave and nine other survivors. She could have easily escaped first but she chose to push everyone else out. The court rescheduled the hearing to continue on Wednesday, August 13, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. August 13, 2003 - Legal arguments were held before Judge Sullivan, with the attorneys for the government and the defense arguing their positions on the government's motion for the court to reconsider its ruling barring the death penalty in this case. Our tickets got confirmed at the last moment on Pan-Am Flight-73, which was headed from Mumbai to New York, via Karachi and Frankfurt. Those hours were torturous. October 2, 2001 - Defendant Safarini is arraigned before Judge Emmet G. Sullivan in the District of Columbia and pleads not guilty to each of the counts in the indictment. Years later, the Libyan government admitted having planned the attack and agreed to US demands to pay compensation to the American citizens onboard. Security forces laid siege to the New York-bound plane for 16 hours at Karachi airport after the jet was taken over by Palestinian militants on 5 September 1986. They have thrown every bit of their resources into trying to shut her up.. See a copy of the superseding indictment. Va., flight attendant, THOMAS, Carol, New York, flight attendant, TORRECH, Miguel, New York, flight attendant. Sherene says she knew then that time was running out. He made me wear a burkha and we stepped out as the security wasnt allowing me to step out. All 259 people on board were killed, and 11 individuals on the ground also died. Nearly 30 years after the hijack of Pan Am Flight 73 at Karachi airport, six of the plane's crew have spoken to the media for the first time. She was allowed to lie down. Courageous crew members like Sunshine went back into the plane to look for survivors when the gunfire ceased and found . The letter also contained a handbook entitled "Coping After Terrorism: Information for Victims and Survivors of the Pan Am Flight #73 Hijacking. At the International Conference on Cyber Security in New York, FBI Director Christopher Wray discussed how the FBI is evolving to stay ahead of threats in the digital age. New Images Released in 1986 Hijacking Case. It was blamed for a string of attacks in the 1970s and 80s, killing and wounding hundreds of people, The Pan Am crew were recognised with courage awards by the airline in 1986, the US Department of Justice in 2005 and the US attorney general in 2006. She was calm and responsible right up to the end. That plot was averted when the pilots climbed out of an emergency cockpit of the Boeing 747. Once the death penalty issue is resolved, including any appeal, if one is filed, a new trial date will be set. This action was undertaken in coordination with a joint announcement with the U.S. Department of State that the Rewards for Justice Program is offering a reward of up to $5 million each for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of the four individuals Wadoud Muhammad Hafiz al-Turki , Jamal Saeed Abdul Rahim, Muhammad Abdullah Khalil Hussain ar-Rahayyal, and Muhammad Ahmed al-Munawar all believed to have been members of the Abu Nidal terrorist organization. He had been on a climbing expedition in northern Pakistan to say goodbye to his elder brother Pete, a doctor who had died during . I told the terrorist I wanted some water. Like I say, there are many shades of gray here. Hassan Abd Latif Safarini appeared in court Wednesday to begin the sentencing phase for his role as lead hijacker of Pan Am Flight 73. "I noticed immediately that the escape devices in the cockpit had been deployed. Thirty-two years later, Trahan, now 33, is a wife and mother who has . Some survivors of the ill-fated PanAm flight 73 recount the sordid memories of that September day in 1986 when the airhostess gave up her life in the line of duty. The letters provided information about defendant Safarini's guilty plea and encouraged victims to attend the scheduled sentencing proceeding. Another person who was on the wings jumped down and broke his legs. Lynne Carol Hartunian , 21, Schenectady, N.Y. (SUNY Oswego) Anthony Lacey Hawkins , 57 . If we didnt speak up for ourselves, I cant tell you how victimized we would feel, she said. She was hit with a bullet in her skull and had injuries on her chest and hands. The elderly woman, a resident of a village outside Bombay, had been on her way to Southern California with Kumar and Kumars aunt, Gangaben Patel. After complaints by families in the United States that they had been unable to get accurate information about their kin on the jetliner, a spokeswoman for a State Department task force said American consular officials were empowered only to deal with U.S. citizens. 2023 BBC. They saw another door had been deployed in automatic, which meant that the emergency slide was inflated. I climbed back into the aircraft and then ran to the rear exit. The fundamental issue is whether the sisters are showing great courage in standing up to a big law firm for what should be theirs or whether they are, in essence, greedy. More information will be provided on submitting a victim impact statement at a later date. The pilot picked up on her second attempt and she relayed the hijack code. She had been shot in the lower left leg as she rushed to an emergency exit and her back and neck were injured when she jumped down to the tarmac. On that night, Dec. 8, 1963, Flight 214, a Pan American Airways Boeing 707, was returning to the U.S. from from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Under the plea agreement announced in court, the government has agreed not to litigate further the Courts prior ruling that the death penalty was not available in this case in exchange for Safarini agreeing to the following terms, among other things: (1) a guilty plea to all 95 counts of the indictment; (2) an agreement that Safarini will be sentenced to the maximum term of imprisonment on each count, with some counts to run consecutively and some to run concurrently, for a total sentence of three consecutive life sentences plus 25 years, which is equivalent to 160 years in prison; (3) an agreement that, as the result of the consecutive sentencing, there will be no mandatory parole release date for Safarini during his lifetime; (4) an acknowledgment that, despite the fact that Safarini will have a right to parole proceedings under governing law at the time the hijacking took place, the government intends to oppose his release on parole at any time during his lifetime; (5) an agreement by Safarini to waive any appeal of the sentence, to waive any collateral attack on the plea or the sentence and to forego any motion for reduction of sentence; and (6) an agreement that Safarini will cooperate whenever, and in whatever form, the United States shall reasonably request, including by testifying against his co-defendants, if and when any of them comes into United States custody. We were informed that all those who hadnt made it to the tarmac had died inside the aircraft. Then I was pushed gently from an exit and I landed on the tarmac. On September 5, 1986, Pan Am Flight 73 was hijacked on the ground at Karachi Airport in Pakistan by Palestinian terrorists led by the Abu Nidal Organization, a terrorist organization backed by . In 2005, at the urging of other Flight 73 survivors, she and her sister joined a group that hired the Washington, D.C. law firm of Crowell & Moring to pursue claims against the Libyan government, which had backed several international terrorist exploits, including the 1988 Pan Am explosion over Lockerbie, Scotland. September 12, 2002 - Defendant Safarini is arraigned on the superseding indictment and pleads not guilty to each of the counts. One hundred seventy-six passengers, estates, and family members who were victims of the September 5, 1986 terrorist hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi, Pakistan filed suit today against Libya and the individuals convicted of launching the attack. Budget 2023. Her actions led to 359 of the 380 people on-board the plane managing to live through the ordeal. May 5, 2003 - The court heard testimony from two FBI agents in connection with the defendant's motion to suppress statements and the defendant's speedy trial motion. The powerful emotions that stick in Gargi Davs heart and mind from the hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 nearly a quarter-century ago mix the horrific with the unexpectedly kind, the blessing of survival with the resolve not to be victimized again. At one point she looked longingly at the emergency axe in a glass box in the cockpit. LUKER, Marilyn. Members Only. As soon as his prayer was over, they started firing indiscriminately. In the chaos and darkness, at least three doors had been opened, though it is not clear by whom. At the end of the proceeding, Judge Sullivan took the matter under advisement and will issue a written decision at a later date. Neerja was standing right next to the exit. They let out a war cry," says Sunshine, "and began firing into the crowd. The attack, which occurred aboard Pan Am Flight 73 during an airport stopover in Karachi, resulted in the deaths of 20 passengers and crew. Become a Member. I was from a business family, married into another business family but I chose to start an NGO, providing education for the underprivileged after going through this tragedy. They were at every exit trying to push us out of the aircraft. We had to wait on the tarmac for 45 minutes for a transport vehicle to carry my mothers coffin. The PanAm had also survivors, before the names of the survivors appears a * Content of the page: Crewlist of the PanAm. The government argues that the death penalty is available for defendant Safarini's violation of the air piracy statute. By India Today Web Desk: On this day, exactly 31 years ago, a young flight attendant named Neerja Bhanot boarded Pan Am Flight 73 that would be hijacked on its way to the United States of America. They threw the hand grenades too, one of which fell on my friend Rupal, sitting next to me. Around 4 pm, we were served some cold drinks and snacks.The most incredible memory is that of Neerja gesturing the passengers to hide their American passports. We were asked to hold our hands behind and bow down. They pushed her down first, then jumped out themselves. (Karen T. Borchers/Mercury News). See a Message on the 25th Anniversary of the Hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73. They turned and ran back through the plane--and some gunfire--to the other wing, where they were able to slide to safety. She informed the pilots about the hijack and thats how the pilots could escape. I realised I was completely drenched in my mothers blood. It changed my perception. An airhostess, who felt unwell, too lay down next to Trupti. A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. But Pan-American Flight 759 crashed . Contact the Webmaster to submit comments. Aside from one sharp kick, he says, he was not physically mistreated and eventually escaped with others in the later chaos. Amid sobs and applause from victims and relatives of those killed in the 1986 hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi, Pakistan, Zaid Hassan Abd Latif Safarini -- leader of an Abu Nidal terrorist . They shot a certain US citizen by the name of Rajesh.I remember seeing Neerja each time the terrorists asked her to give us instructions. The Boeing 747, known as the Clipper Maid of the Seas, left London Heathrow with 243 passengers and 16 crew members, including 189 Americans. The $5 million reward is offered through the State Departments Rewards for Justice Program. Unable to fly the plane, the terrorists started by executing an American and dumping his body out the door of the plane. The crew of Pan Am Flight 73 (three of whom are pictured here with their colleagues) were all in their early to mid 20s at the time of the hijack. It was his birthday and he was taking revenge. Va., flight attendant. The door nearest the wing had been opened in manual, which meant that the emergency slide did not deploy. Some of us, passengers and crew alike, are still struggling with the skeletons of the past, trying to fix the puzzle of incidents, sequences, people who were involved in the chains of events," says Nupoor. 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Victim impact statements can be given in written or recorded form, and a limited number of victims will be permitted to give in-court testimony. 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