In 1988, a Pan Am plane crashed in Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all 259 people on board and 11 on the ground. A bag that had been transferred from another flight and whose owner was missing exploded causing the crash. Since then, aviation security has undergone changes that continue to this day.
What happened?
On December 21, 1988, a Boeing 747 of the American airline Pan Am flew from London (England) to New York (USA).
Just before the beginning of the ocean crossing, a timertriggered bomb exploded in the aircraft’s cargo hold. The aircraft was about 9.5 km over the town of Lockerbie in Scotland.
The artifact was made with an odorless plastic explosive, making detection difficult. It was in a tape recorder kept in a suitcase.
The explosion caused devastating damage to the aircraft’s fuselage, which disintegrated in midair. Parts of the 747 were scattered over an area of about 2 km².
All 243 passengers and 16 crew perished in the crash. Eleven people were killed by debris on the ground and 21 homes were destroyed.
How did the bomb get there?
The bomb would have arrived on the crashed plane after being transhipped from a flight on a Boeing 727 in Frankfurt, Germany. Passengers and luggage were transferred to the larger 747 aircraft in England, from where they departed for New York.
Previously, the luggage would have left Malta for the airport in Germany. After this step, she traveled unaccompanied, with no indication of which passenger she belonged to, arrived in London and was put on the plane bound for New York without ID.
attack motivation
The attack on Pan Am Flight 103 stems from a dispute between the United States and Libya that dates back at least to the early 1980s.
In 1981, two Libyan planes were shot down by US planes in the Gulf of Sidra off the coast of Libya. In 1986, the US attacked and sank Syrian ships in the same region.
In retaliation, Libya ordered the attack on the La Belle nightclub in Berlin, Germany, a US military hangout. Three people died and 30 were seriously injured.
In a further escalation of the conflict, the US attacked the cities of Tripoli and Benghazi in Libya a few days after the Disco attack. The bombings killed 39 people and aimed to eliminate the country’s leader, Muammar Gaddafi.
One of the victims would be Gaddafi’s adopted daughter Hana, just one year old. Although her body was shown to the press, many people did not believe this version of the story, claiming that today she would even be a qualified doctor.
Decades later, the Libyan government organized a festival named after Hana. Gaddafi always said Hana’s death was a cause of deep sadness for him and his family.
The attack on Flight 103 would have been motivated for these reasons. Most of the passengers were Americans.
guilty
Megrahi in a hospital in Libya: Those convicted only of the Lockerbie bombing died in 2012
Image: Sabri Elmhedwi/Efe
The investigation initially revealed that Libyans Abdel Baset Ali alMegrahi and Lamen Khalifa Fhimah were directly responsible for the attack. Both were government officials in that country.
It was only in 1999 that Libya agreed to try both. The move came after negotiations to reduce sanctions imposed on the country in exchange for the two accused.
After a trial, Fhimah was acquitted while Megrahi was sentenced to prison. In 2009 he was diagnosed with cancer, he was released and returned to his country where he died in 2012.
The Libyan government agreed in 2003 to pay financial compensation to the families of those killed in the attack. In 2004, he agreed to pay $35 million to some of the victims of the 1986 Berlin disco bombing.
The US resumed diplomatic relations with the country in 2006 after previously imposed sanctions were lifted.
Suspect arrested in US in 2022
One of the suspects involved in the attack has not yet been brought to justice. Abu Agila Masud has been accused of building the bomb that exploded on the Pan Am plane.
In December 2022, the then 71yearold former Libyan agent was arrested by the US government. He now has to face charges in American custody.
Changes in Aviation Regulations
The Lockerbie attack led to major changes in global aviation. The most important point relates to strengthening security and baggage handling on flights.
A suitcase cannot travel unaccompanied. If a person checks baggage but does not show up on the plane, it must be removed for security reasons.
Baggage can be carried without its owner only if shipped as cargo. In doing so, it must go through differentiated security measures to ensure that it does not pose a risk.
Another situation is the loss of baggage. If a piece of baggage is lost by its owner, it can continue traveling alone on another flight as this is not the passenger’s fault.
Some of these measures had been taken before the Lockerbie attack. However, after Flight 103 crashed, they were revised and became mandatory in many parts of the world.
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