The Pan Am flight 103 came down at Lockerbie in Scotland on it way from Frankfurt to Detroit via London. Investigations into the disaster took detectives and aviation experts across twenty countries. The death toll according to Pan Am Flight 103 air crash investigation report totaled 270. Of this number, 259 were on-board while 11 died on the ground. Preliminary findings and eventual conclusion pointed at a bomb attack.
Experts concluded that at the time of the explosion, the plane must have been traveling at a height of 31,000 feet. Libya took the blame for the act which was termed at terrorism. The debris was reassembled in a warehouse to establish the cause of this disaster. It is considered the worst attack in the history of American aviation. A lot of media attention was focused on every small detail of these investigations.
Investigators spent years collecting evidence and piecing it together before concluding that Libyans were involved. The two suspects were Baset Abdel and Khalifa Al-Amin. The judge concluded that Khalifa was not culpable according to the evidence presented and therefore set him free. The government of Libya was ordered to pay a total of 2.7 billion dollars as compensation because the blame lay on Abdel Baset who was sentenced to death.
Investigations were led by the UK Air Accident Investigation branch. They took over the responsibility because the accident occurred in within their airspace. A whopping 4 million pieces of debris and evidence were collected with the entire accident area covering over 2000 square kilometers. Computer simulations were necessary in documenting and ordering the pieces.
Involvement of terrorists brought a new dimension into the probe. Investigators found PETN and RDX chemicals which cause Semtex explosion. A combined team of local police, Scotland Yard and FBI carried out the investigations. The bomb could have gained its way into the plane at Frankfurt.
American took keen interest in this inquiry because of fatalities suffered in the disaster. A total of 189 Americans died on board. This was said to be the worst disaster in American history involving the aviation industry. The next disasters to claim such a number of people was the 9/11 attack on Twin Towers. Testimonies were collected from 15,000 people with over 3,500 photos being presented as evidence. The exhibits totaled 180,000. The expenses for this inquiry surpassed any in history.
The total expenditure for the process crocked 60 million dollars. Those invited to testify were 230 with the court transcripts adding up to 10,000 pages. The trail period lasted 89 days, a new record in the industry. Libyan authorities claimed that though they agreed to pay the cost of damage, they had been used as scapegoats and were not the culprits. The other theory implicated Palestinians with Libya reading political malice in the conclusion.
The possibility that Iran was responsible was heightened by the fact that they had a long standing conflict with American. American had grounded an Iranian plane which killed to 290 Iranians on board in the Persian Gulf. It took international sanctions to compel Libya into accepting responsibility. The politics surrounding the disaster makes it difficult to know the truth.
Experts concluded that at the time of the explosion, the plane must have been traveling at a height of 31,000 feet. Libya took the blame for the act which was termed at terrorism. The debris was reassembled in a warehouse to establish the cause of this disaster. It is considered the worst attack in the history of American aviation. A lot of media attention was focused on every small detail of these investigations.
Investigators spent years collecting evidence and piecing it together before concluding that Libyans were involved. The two suspects were Baset Abdel and Khalifa Al-Amin. The judge concluded that Khalifa was not culpable according to the evidence presented and therefore set him free. The government of Libya was ordered to pay a total of 2.7 billion dollars as compensation because the blame lay on Abdel Baset who was sentenced to death.
Investigations were led by the UK Air Accident Investigation branch. They took over the responsibility because the accident occurred in within their airspace. A whopping 4 million pieces of debris and evidence were collected with the entire accident area covering over 2000 square kilometers. Computer simulations were necessary in documenting and ordering the pieces.
Involvement of terrorists brought a new dimension into the probe. Investigators found PETN and RDX chemicals which cause Semtex explosion. A combined team of local police, Scotland Yard and FBI carried out the investigations. The bomb could have gained its way into the plane at Frankfurt.
American took keen interest in this inquiry because of fatalities suffered in the disaster. A total of 189 Americans died on board. This was said to be the worst disaster in American history involving the aviation industry. The next disasters to claim such a number of people was the 9/11 attack on Twin Towers. Testimonies were collected from 15,000 people with over 3,500 photos being presented as evidence. The exhibits totaled 180,000. The expenses for this inquiry surpassed any in history.
The total expenditure for the process crocked 60 million dollars. Those invited to testify were 230 with the court transcripts adding up to 10,000 pages. The trail period lasted 89 days, a new record in the industry. Libyan authorities claimed that though they agreed to pay the cost of damage, they had been used as scapegoats and were not the culprits. The other theory implicated Palestinians with Libya reading political malice in the conclusion.
The possibility that Iran was responsible was heightened by the fact that they had a long standing conflict with American. American had grounded an Iranian plane which killed to 290 Iranians on board in the Persian Gulf. It took international sanctions to compel Libya into accepting responsibility. The politics surrounding the disaster makes it difficult to know the truth.
About the Author:
You can visit www.threesistersponds.com for more helpful information about Pan Am Flight 103 Air Crash Investigation Findings.
No comments:
Post a Comment