Incident Overview
Description
A Trans World Airlines Boeing 727 with 145 passengers and 8 crew members aboard was hijacked by two Shiite Lebanese men armed with a pistol and two hand grenades. The flight was en route from Athens, Greece to Rome, Italy when the hijackers forced their way into the cockpit, beat the first officer and flight engineer, and ordered the captain to fly to Algiers, Algeria. When told by the captain that the aircraft did not have sufficient to fly to Algiers, the hijackers then changed their destination to Beirut, Lebanon. They demanded the release of over 700 Shiite prisoners held by Israel and others. From the period of June 14 through June 26 a total of 111 passengers and 5 flight attendants were released at various times during the three landings at Beirut and two landings at Algiers. One U.S. military passenger was shot and killed on the second landing at Beirut. Additional Shiites joined the original two hijackers ordering the captain to fly to Algiers a second time. During this landing, a third member of the original team who failed to get on the aircraft in Athens joined the group. On June 30, 1985 the remaining 36 passengers and 3 crew members were released in Damascus, Syria. The aircraft was held by Lebanese authorities in Beirut until August 16, 1985.
Primary Cause
Hijacking of a commercial aircraft.Hijacking of a commercial aircraft.Share on:
