Read a copy of the handbook "Coping After Terrorism: Information for Victims and Survivors of Pan Am Flight #73 Hijacking May 12-13, 2004 - A sentencing proceeding was held before Judge Sullivan, attended by more than 50 victims and family members, many of whom provided powerful and emotional statements during the two-day proceeding. One lady amongst us, Trupti, complained of a headache. As the movie Neerja is releasing today, I thought it would be great to bring this story to all of you. Once the death penalty issue is resolved, including any appeal, if one is filed, a new trial date will be set. The government argues that the death penalty is available for defendant Safarini's violation of the air piracy statute. May 30, 2003 - Defendant filed his response to the government's motion for the court to reconsider its ruling barring the death penalty in this case. June 19, 2000 - The federal court in the District of Columbia grants the government's request to unseal the indictment, thereby making public the pending criminal charges in the United States. Shama, another friend, had two bullet injuries in her head. T. M. George, 45, an auto parts store manager, was wounded in the back when he tried to shield his family from gunfire. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! That incident changed my outlook towards life. They saw another door had been deployed in automatic, which meant that the emergency slide was inflated. She was hit with a bullet in her skull and had injuries on her chest and hands. Her sister could get as much. I experienced compassion from a stranger, that too a Pakistani. December 12, 2002 - The government files a notice of its intent to seek the death penalty against defendant Safarini, as well as a legal brief in response to defendant Safarini's motion seeking to bar the availability of the death penalty in this case. That didnt make sense to Gargi Dav, who read the law firms demands with a trained lawyers eye. Eventually, she moved back to New Orleans and married Joe Ferrara, whom she called the boy next door in the Times-Picayune story. Three lives would be saved.". 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. [17], One of the four, Jamal Saeed Abdul Rahim, was allegedly killed in a dr The attack, which occurred aboard Pan Am Flight 73 during an airport stopover in Karachi, resulted in the deaths of 20 passengers and crew. She still lives on through the ultimate courage - saving lives at cost of her own. Outside on the tarmac, Pan Am's Karachi director Viraf Doroga used a megaphone to begin negotiations with the hijackers. The powerful emotions that stick in Gargi Dav's 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 . In the chaos and darkness, at least three doors had been opened, though it is not clear by whom. When our flight landed in Karachi, the hijackers entered the aircraft wearing security guard uniforms. One of the hijackers removed a blanket and covered her with it because she was wearing a short skirt. The Court finds that the ends of justice will be served by allowing the parties additional time to prepare for trial. ", See a copy of the Sentencing Response Form, See a copy of the Victim Impact Statement Form, Read a copy of the handbook "Coping After Terrorism: Information for Victims and Survivors of Pan Am Flight #73 Hijacking, May 12-13, 2004 - A sentencing proceeding was held before Judge Sullivan, attended by more than 50 victims and family members, many of whom provided powerful and emotional statements during the two-day proceeding. These were the 2 cockpit observers who may as well be considered passengers, 2 flight attendants, and 12 passengers. As the shooting began to die down, said George, a flight attendant called out that an emergency exit was open. I hid below the seats so I was saved. In panic mode, they opened gunfire. But if they accede to the demands of the law firm, Crowell & Moring, to share the money with the 137 non-Americans in the case, the Davs estimate they would lose 90 percent of the money negotiated for them. November 7, 2001 - The Court finds that, due to the complexity of the case, it would be unreasonable to expect the parties to prepare for trial within the time limits established by the Speedy Trial Act (usually 70 days). THOMAS, Carol, New York, flight attendant. Neerja swayed the terrorists to allow us to use the washroom telling them that the passengers would cooperate better if they were allowed. "On occasion he would hold my hair, force my face to the window and ask what I could see on the tarmac. And then another militant, his AK-47 and grenades in clear view, instructed Sunshine to take him to the captain. It took a tremendous amount of courage, said her attorney, Boyd. The door nearest the wing had been opened in manual, which meant that the emergency slide did not deploy. She slid out the exit upside down. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. The Abu Nidal Organisation (ANO) is a Palestinian militant group, now considered largely inactive. The Indian-born couple had taken their children on a vacation to Bombay and were returning home when the aircraft was commandeered. The Abu Nidal Organisation (ANO), which they were members of, was opposed to US and Israeli policy in the Middle East. After being rushed to the hospital by two Pakistani men at the airport, Gargi Dav slipped into a coma. I was told to go alone and on my way back, I came across a water dispenser. At the plea proceeding on December 16th, the terms of the plea agreement will be made public and the defendant is expected to admit his guilt. 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Get Morning Report and other email newsletters, Gargi Dave, at home in Sunnyvale, talks about her case on Tuesday, June 15, 2010. Also, a sentencing date will be scheduled (probably for some time in the spring of 2004). 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. An official website of the United States government. "Neerja's life may have been saved were conditions in the hospital better.". And screams.". He said she related, It was all confusion and panic. Lynne Carol Hartunian , 21, Schenectady, N.Y. (SUNY Oswego) Anthony Lacey Hawkins , 57 . Two of the six remain in the industry. March 10, 2003 - Attorneys for both sides filed briefs in response to the motions and notices filed on February 10, 2003. Otherwise wed have panicked. Similar findings are made by the Court on May 3, 2002, and again on November 1, 2002. Sherene saw that mechanic Meherjee had been killed. Pan Am Flight 73 had just touched down in Karachi after departing from Mumbai, India, and was en route to Germany and then New York when the Palestinian gunmen commandeered it around 6:00 a.m. that fateful September day. More than three decades after a bomb pierced the evening sky over Lockerbie, Scotland, the Syracuse University community carries on a tradition to honor the 35 study-abroad students killed on Pan Am Flight 103. The Pan Am 73 terrorist attack killed 20 passengers and crew and severely injured more than 100 of the 380 persons on board. Neerja may still be alive if she'd been cared for right away," says Sunshine. 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 . When her dead body arrived in Mumbai, she looked fresh and beautiful because all her wounds were on her back.Had there been a VIP or a minister on our plane; all the lives would have been saved. June 16, 2003 - The government filed its reply brief in support of its motion for the court to reconsider its ruling barring the death penalty in this case. Many went for it. Age: 40Profession: ArtistI was 12 then and travelling with my mother Trupti Dalal. See the press release concerning the guilty plea, See a copy of the signed plea agreement concerning the guilty plea, See a copy of the of the facts proffered by the government to which the defendant admitted guilt under oath, January 20, 2004 - Letters were mailed to victims whose addresses are known to the prosecution. Meherjee, the mechanic, told Safarini that the emergency power would last 15 minutes or so before the aircraft would be plunged into darkness. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. The passenger plane crashed in a residential area of Kenner soon after . I was so fortunate to be surrounded by a loving family, including my grandparents from both sides, she told the New Orleans Times-Picayune in an interview highlighting the anniversary of the tragedy. 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. On December 21, 1988, their 20-year-old daughter, Theodora, was one of 270 people killed in the terrorist bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. 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. 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. We were aware they took hold of Rajesh, a US national. We stood still and numb, long after the end credits rolled. No Thanks Va., flight attendant, THOMAS, Carol, New York, flight attendant, TORRECH, Miguel, New York, flight attendant. Hassan Abd Latif Safarini appeared in court Wednesday to begin the sentencing phase for his role as lead hijacker of Pan Am Flight 73. The great eye opener though was the compassion shown by Pakistanis. The pact the Bush administration signed with the Libyan government, which dismissed all other existing lawsuits, applied only to the American passengers on Flight 73, who were in a distinct minority. The FAI report concluded that Pan Am 103's 16 crew and 243 named passengers, including Bernt Wilmar Carlsson (born on 21 November 1938 and residing at Apartment 30, 207 West 106th Street, New York, New York 10025 . "Many have criticised the pilots for leaving the rest of the crew behind, but I was relieved when I saw the pilots were gone, as we were all safer on the ground than we would be in the air. He caught me doing that and asked whether I was a journalist. Read about our approach to external linking. Anyone can read what you share. It was one of the deadliest airplane crashes in the history of the U.S. Over a long time, it looked like the Dav sisters and the rest of the passengers on the Pan Am flight would never see a penny in compensation for their suffering. More information will be provided to victims concerning submitting a victim impact. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. 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. They made 300 passengers move to the front of the economy cabin. For her part, Gargi firmly rejects the notion that she is trying to put herself ahead of any other victim. Please use portrait mode for best experience. WILLIAMS, Norman; RO Palos Verdes, Calif. BRAGG, Robert, Howard Beach, N. Y., first officer, DONOVAN, Susanne, Harrisburg, Pa., flight attendant, GRUBBS, Victor, Centerport, L.I., captain, JACKSON, Joan, Nashville. Crowell & Moring LLP would like to recognize 13 of the firm's Pan Am Flight 73 victims of terrorism clients who were presented the Special Courage Award by Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales during the National Crime Victims' Rights Week Awards Ceremony on April 21, 2006. "That day, knowingly or unknowingly, we came together as a team and played our parts to the best of our ability," says Massey Casper, another steward. She was allowed to lie down. But win or lose, what strikes me is how a 10-year-old victim has grown up to be an intelligent and passionate young lawyer willing to take on a big international law firm that has threatened her with legal reprisals. "It was 5th September 1986. Even after 30 years, he breaks down at the memory. Just 61 people survived, all from the Pan Am jumbo jet. There were 14 flight attendants on board, 12 of whom were preparing for take-off. Nobody knew what to do. Being fond of writing, I was jotting down my feelings on a piece of paper. At the end of the proceeding, Judge Sullivan took the matter under advisement and will issue a written decision at a later date.