The subject of the Pan Am Flight 103 air crash investigation was the explosion of an American airliner over the sleepy town of Lockerbie, Scotland, on December 21, 1988 shortly after 7:00 PM. The village contains a golf course, a train station and a park named after King Edward. The town is passed by Highway A74(M).
The peaceful, unassuming little town was never to be the same. Pan American Airlines Flight 103 was en route to New York City. Originating in Frankfurt, Germany, with a stop at London's Heathrow Airport to drop off and pick up passengers. At three minutes past seven that Thursday evening, Flight 103 exploded over the tiny village, killing 259 people, as well as 11 people on the ground. The explosion left a six-mile trail of destruction on the ground.
Three days before the incident, on December 18, American embassies in Finland and Russia had circulated warnings threats that had been received of a Pan Am flight from Frankfurt to the United States planned to be the target of a terrorist attack. While the airline was made aware of the threats, as were the relevant police departments, the threat was not made public. People who were intending to board the aircraft in London but who didn't make it were an Indian mechanic, Jaswant Basuta (who was, for a while, a suspect in the bombing), American singing group, the Four Tops, and Pik Botha, the foreign minister for South Africa.
An unaccompanied suitcase was discovered to have been flown from Malta to Frankfurt, where it was placed on Pan Am Flight 103A to London. Coincidentally, or not, the plane in Malta had also been boarded by Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, later convicted of murder for masterminding the attack. To prevent future incidents of unaccompanied luggage, security at minor airports all over the globe has been strictly tightened in the wake of the Lockerbie incident.
Fingertip searches of the Lockerbie area in the process of the crash investigation turned up 56 pieces of a suitcase showing extensive bomb damage. A circuit board from the bomb was reported to have been found wrapped inside a child's t-shirt from Malta. The Maltese shopkeeper at first identified the man who bought the shirt as Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, although he later withdrew his remarks.
Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was tried in a neutral country, the Netherlands, under Scottish law. This was because the offense occurred in Scotland. The trial began in 2000 and concluded in 2001.
At the conclusion of the trial, the Libyan was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, serving a minimum of 27 years. Seven years later, in 2008, the convicted killer was diagnosed with terminal cancer and freed from prison by the then Scottish Secretary of Justice. He was flown to his home state of Libya on compassionate grounds. This decision remains hotly contested by people in the United Kingdom and in America. Insult followed injury when the convicted mass murderer was welcomed a hero when he arrived in Libya.
The Pan Am Flight 103 air crash investigation was led by Chief Inspector Watson McAteer and John Orr of Scotland. On the American team were Lawrence Whittaker, Robert Muller, Vincent Cannistraro and James Shaughnessy. One year after the crash, the investigation had amassed 35,000 photographs, 15,000 statements and 12,700 name cards. Investigators had traveled to 13 countries.
The peaceful, unassuming little town was never to be the same. Pan American Airlines Flight 103 was en route to New York City. Originating in Frankfurt, Germany, with a stop at London's Heathrow Airport to drop off and pick up passengers. At three minutes past seven that Thursday evening, Flight 103 exploded over the tiny village, killing 259 people, as well as 11 people on the ground. The explosion left a six-mile trail of destruction on the ground.
Three days before the incident, on December 18, American embassies in Finland and Russia had circulated warnings threats that had been received of a Pan Am flight from Frankfurt to the United States planned to be the target of a terrorist attack. While the airline was made aware of the threats, as were the relevant police departments, the threat was not made public. People who were intending to board the aircraft in London but who didn't make it were an Indian mechanic, Jaswant Basuta (who was, for a while, a suspect in the bombing), American singing group, the Four Tops, and Pik Botha, the foreign minister for South Africa.
An unaccompanied suitcase was discovered to have been flown from Malta to Frankfurt, where it was placed on Pan Am Flight 103A to London. Coincidentally, or not, the plane in Malta had also been boarded by Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, later convicted of murder for masterminding the attack. To prevent future incidents of unaccompanied luggage, security at minor airports all over the globe has been strictly tightened in the wake of the Lockerbie incident.
Fingertip searches of the Lockerbie area in the process of the crash investigation turned up 56 pieces of a suitcase showing extensive bomb damage. A circuit board from the bomb was reported to have been found wrapped inside a child's t-shirt from Malta. The Maltese shopkeeper at first identified the man who bought the shirt as Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, although he later withdrew his remarks.
Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was tried in a neutral country, the Netherlands, under Scottish law. This was because the offense occurred in Scotland. The trial began in 2000 and concluded in 2001.
At the conclusion of the trial, the Libyan was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, serving a minimum of 27 years. Seven years later, in 2008, the convicted killer was diagnosed with terminal cancer and freed from prison by the then Scottish Secretary of Justice. He was flown to his home state of Libya on compassionate grounds. This decision remains hotly contested by people in the United Kingdom and in America. Insult followed injury when the convicted mass murderer was welcomed a hero when he arrived in Libya.
The Pan Am Flight 103 air crash investigation was led by Chief Inspector Watson McAteer and John Orr of Scotland. On the American team were Lawrence Whittaker, Robert Muller, Vincent Cannistraro and James Shaughnessy. One year after the crash, the investigation had amassed 35,000 photographs, 15,000 statements and 12,700 name cards. Investigators had traveled to 13 countries.
About the Author:
You can visit www.threesistersponds.com for more helpful information about Pan Am Flight 103 Air Crash Investigation.
No comments:
Post a Comment