1973 Rome airport attacks and hijacking

Lufthansa Flight 303
	A Lufthansa Boeing 737, similar to the aircraft involved in the hijacking
Hijacking
Date	17 December 1973–; 18 December 1973
Summary	Aircraft hijacking
Site	Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino International Airport in Rome, Italy ; 41°48′01″N 12°14′20″E / 41.80028°N 12.23889°E
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 737-100
Operator	Lufthansa
Registration	D-ABEY
Flight origin	Leonardo da Vinci Int'l Airport
1st stopover	Athens, Greece
2nd stopover	Damascus, Syria
Destination	Kuwait
Passengers	10 (excluding up to 5 terrorists)
Crew	4
Fatalities	2
Injuries	At least 2

Pan Am Flight 110
	A Pan Am Boeing 707-321, similar to the aircraft involved in the attack
Incident
Date	17 December 1973
Summary	Aircraft attack, arson
Site	Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino International Airport ; 41°48′01″N 12°14′20″E / 41.80028°N 12.23889°E
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 707-321B
Aircraft name	Clipper Celestial
Operator	Pan Am
Registration	N407PA
Flight origin	Leonardo da Vinci Int'l Airport
Stopover	Beirut International Airport
Destination	Mehrabad Int'l Airport
Passengers	167
Crew	10
Fatalities	30
Injuries	20
Survivors	147

1973 Rome airport attacks
1973 Rome airport attacks
	Rome Athens Damascus Kuwait Initial attack site at Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino International Airport in Rome and hijacked airliner landing sites
Location	Rome, Italy (primary); Athens, Greece; Damascus, Syria; Kuwait;
Coordinates	41°48′01″N 12°14′20″E / 41.80028°N 12.23889°ECoordinates: 41°48′01″N 12°14′20″E / 41.80028°N 12.23889°E
Date	17–18 December 1973 (CET / UTC+01:00)
Target	Aircraft in Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport
Attack type	Terrorism, aircraft hijacking, hostage crisis, firebombing
Deaths	34
Injured	At least 22 (including 1 terrorist)

The 1973 Rome airport attacks and hijacking were a set of Palestinian terrorist attacks originating at Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino International Airport in Fiumicino, Lazio, Italy, and resulting in the deaths of 34 people.^[1] The attacks began with an airport-terminal invasion and hostage-taking, followed by the firebombing of Pan American World Airways Flight 110.

Pan American World Airways flight 110 was scheduled to depart from Rome, Italy and arrive in Tehran, Iran, by way of Beirut, Lebanon. On 17 December 1973, shortly before takeoff, the airport terminal and the flight aircraft were attacked and the aircraft was set on fire by armed Palestinian gunmen, resulting in the deaths of thirty persons on the plane and two in the terminal.^[2]

Following the flight 110 attack, the gunmen hijacked Lufthansa Flight 303 and killed two more people. They ended up in the custody of the Kuwaiti authorities.^[3]

Background[]

Since the ousting of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from Jordan, following the Jordanian-Palestinian civil war, Palestinian military organizations made South Lebanon their headquarters and base of operations, enlisting militants from Palestinian refugee camps. South Lebanon was referred to as Fatah-land, due to the almost complete control of Fatah and other military Palestinian organizations over this -officially Lebanese- area, which they used to stage attacks against Israel, mainly targeting civilians, and to engage in armed operations abroad, termed "acts of terrorism."

Terminal invasion and firebombing of Pan Am Flight 110[]

On 17 December 1973, Pan Am Flight 110 was scheduled to fly from Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Rome to Beirut International Airport in Lebanon and then on to Tehran, Iran. At the controls of the Boeing 707-321B (registration N407PA,^[4] name Clipper Celestial)^[5] were Captain Andrew Erbeck,^[6] First Officer Robert Davison, and Flight engineer Kenneth Pfrang.^[7]^[8]

At approximately 1251 local time in Rome, just as Flight 110 was preparing to taxi, five Palestinian people made their way through the terminal building, armed with automatic firearms and grenades. The terrorists removed submachine guns from hand-luggage bags and began firing throughout the terminal, shattering windows and killing two people. Pilots and crew in the cockpit of the aircraft were able to observe travelers and airport employees in the building running for cover. Captain Erbeck announced over the plane's public address system that there was "some commotion" in the terminal and instructed all the people on board to get down on the floor.

Several of the gunmen ran across the tarmac toward the Pan American jet, throwing one phosphorus incendiary and other hand grenades through the open front and rear doors of the aircraft.^[9] The explosions knocked crew and passengers to the ground, and the cabin filled with thick, acrid smoke from the resulting fires. Flight attendants were able to open the emergency exit over the wing on one side of the plane; the other exit was obstructed by gunmen. The crew attempted to evacuate as many passengers as possible through the available exit, but twenty-nine passengers and purser Diana Perez^[7] died on the plane, including all eleven passengers in first class. Four Moroccan officials^[10] heading to Iran for a visit, and Bonnie Erbeck, wife of the plane's captain,^[6] were among the dead.^[11] Captain Erbeck survived the attack. Also killed were fourteen Aramco employees and employee family members.^[7] The aircraft itself was destroyed.^[5]

Lufthansa hijacking[]

During the same time, five other gunmen took hostage several Italians and Lufthansa ground crew members into Lufthansa Flight 303 Boeing 737 (registration D-ABEY) waiting to depart for Munich.^[12] An Italian customs officer, 20-years old Antonio Zara, was shot dead on the ground when he first arrived at the scene of the attack, after the general alarm had been soundeded by the airport's control tower.

The hijackers then forced the crew already on board to move the plane towards the runway in order to take off. For the first part of the plane's taxiing, the aircraft was chased by several Carabinieri and Guardia di Finanza vehicles, who abandoned the chase after the hijackers threatened to kill all the hostages on board. At 1332 hours, just over half an hour from the start of the action, the plane took off for Athens, Greece, where it arrived at 1650 hours, local Athens time.

Athens stopover[]

Upon landing in Athens, the terrorists demanded by radio the release of two Palestinian gunmen responsible for an attack on Hellinikon International Airport.^[1] They claimed to have killed five hostages, including the plane's first officer. The terrorists then threatened to crash the jet in the middle of Athens if their demands were not met. In reality, only one Italian hostage, Domenico Ippoliti, had been killed and one other hostage wounded. After failing to persuade the Greek authorities on releasing the terrorists, they limited their demands to just refuel and leave.^[13] The plane took off again from Athens after sixteen hours on the ground and after the gunmen had released the wounded hostage and dumped the body of the dead hostage onto the tarmac.

Damascus stopover[]

The plane next headed for Beirut, where Lebanese authorities refused to allow its landing, and blocked the runway with vehicles. Cyprus also refused to allow landing. The terrorists on board ordered the plane to head for Damascus, Syria, allegedly because the plane was running low on fuel. After they landed in the Syrian capital's airport, Air Force Commander Major General Naji Jamil attempted to persuade the Palestinians to release the hostages, but they refused. The Syrians provided food to everyone on board and refueled the plane. They also treated one of the hijackers for a head injury. The plane took off again two to three hours after landing.

Landing in Kuwait[]

The commandeered jet headed for Kuwait, where Kuwaiti authorities refused to allow it to land. Captain Kroese was ordered by the terrorists to land anyway on a secondary runway.^[14] An hour of negotiations between the Palestinian gunmen and the Kuwaiti authorities ended with the release of all twelve remaining hostages^[9] in exchange for "free passage" to an unknown destination for the hijackers. The terrorists were permitted to retain their weapons and, upon leaving the plane, raised their hands to the cameras in a V-for-victory sign.

Aftermath[]

It was reported that Kuwaiti authorities later took the hijackers to an air base for "interrogation purposes." Kuwait announced that it had no intention of putting the hijackers on trial, and initially considered releasing the hijackers to the PLO. In March 1974, President Anwar Sadat of Egypt agreed to allow them to come to Cairo "under the responsibility of the PLO," and the Palestinian organization stated the men would be tried for carrying out an "unauthorized operation".

The five Palestinians were eventually released under negotiations during another hijacking that took place on 21 November 1974, and turned over to the custody of the PLO. It is unclear what happened to them after their return to the PLO.^[15]

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b RAND Corporation (3 April 2001). "TKB Incident Page: Other Group attacked Airports & Airlines target (Dec. 17, 1973, Italy)". MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 10 April 2007.
^ "Incident Summary for GTDID: 197312170002". Global Terrorism Database. College Park, Maryland: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
^ "Incident Summary for GTDID: 197312170003". Global Terrorism Database. College Park, Maryland: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
^ "FAA Registry (N407PA)". Federal Aviation Administration.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "N407PA (cn 18838/412) "Clipper Celestial"". Wings on the Web. Demand Media, Inc. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b "Pilots Wife Died in Fire" (scanned). The Milwaukee Journal. Newspapers, Inc. AFP. 18 December 1973. p. 1. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c "TERRORIST ATTACK IN THE ROME AIRPORT – DECEMBER 1973". aramcoexpats.com/obituaries. Aramco ExPats Corporation. Archived from the original on 11 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
^ "State Man Recalls Attack" (scanned). The Milwaukee Sentinel. UPI. 19 December 1973. p. 3 (of Part 1). Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Ramsden, J. M., ed. (27 December 1973). "Rome hijacking". FLIGHT International. IPC Transport Press Ltd. 104 (3380): 1010. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via flightglobal.com/pdfarchive. ran on to the apron and two phosphorus bombs were thrown into the front and rear entrances of a Pan American 707 Celestial Clipper, with 170 passengers on board
^ "Terrorists Release Hostages in Bargain" (digitised). The Milwaukee Journal. Newspapers, Inc. 18 December 1973. pp. 1–2. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.
^ "It's a Bleak Christmas For Friends, Kin of Dead" (scanned). The Evening Independent. AP. 19 December 1973. p. 20 A. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.
^ "Hijacking description: Monday 17 December 1973". aviation-safety.net. Flight Safety Foundation. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
^ "Hijackers kill 30 in airport bombing". Papua New Guinea Post-courier. International, Australia. 19 December 1973. p. 7. Retrieved 7 August 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "TERRORISM: Death in Rome Aboard Flight 110". TIME. 102 (27): 87–108. 31 December 1973. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
^ "Gunmen Punished, P.L.O. Announces". The New York Times. 26 January 1975. p. A1. Retrieved 29 December 2011.

Sources[]

Death in Rome Aboard Flight 110, TIME, 31 December 1973. Retrieved on 10 April 2007. (subscription required)
"Arab Hijackers Land in Kuwait; Hostages Freed". The New York Times, 19 December 1973. Page 1. (subscription required)
"Arab Guerrillas Kill 31 in Rome During Attack on U.S. Airliner, Take Hostages and Go to Athens". The New York Times, 18 December 1973. Page 1. (subscription required)
Athens attack leaves 3 dead, BBC News, 5 August 1973. Retrieved on 10 April 2007.
Gabriele Paradisi, Rosario Priore: La strage dimenticata Fiumicino 17 December 1973, Reggio Emilia 2015.

[mipt-1] Jump up to: ^a ^b RAND Corporation (3 April 2001). "TKB Incident Page: Other Group attacked Airports & Airlines target (Dec. 17, 1973, Italy)". MIPT Terrorism Knowledge Base. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 10 April 2007.

[gtd1-2] "Incident Summary for GTDID: 197312170002". Global Terrorism Database. College Park, Maryland: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2014.

[gtd2-3] "Incident Summary for GTDID: 197312170003". Global Terrorism Database. College Park, Maryland: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2014.

[4] "FAA Registry (N407PA)". Federal Aviation Administration.

[ainet-5] Jump up to: ^a ^b "N407PA (cn 18838/412) "Clipper Celestial"". Wings on the Web. Demand Media, Inc. Retrieved 26 July 2014.

[tmj-18dec73p1-6] Jump up to: ^a ^b "Pilots Wife Died in Fire" (scanned). The Milwaukee Journal. Newspapers, Inc. AFP. 18 December 1973. p. 1. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.

[aramex-dec73-7] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c "TERRORIST ATTACK IN THE ROME AIRPORT – DECEMBER 1973". aramcoexpats.com/obituaries. Aramco ExPats Corporation. Archived from the original on 11 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.

[tms-recall-dec73-8] "State Man Recalls Attack" (scanned). The Milwaukee Sentinel. UPI. 19 December 1973. p. 3 (of Part 1). Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.

[fgarch-rome-dec73-9] Jump up to: ^a ^b Ramsden, J. M., ed. (27 December 1973). "Rome hijacking". FLIGHT International. IPC Transport Press Ltd. 104 (3380): 1010. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via flightglobal.com/pdfarchive. ran on to the apron and two phosphorus bombs were thrown into the front and rear entrances of a Pan American 707 Celestial Clipper, with 170 passengers on board

[tmj-18dec73-10] "Terrorists Release Hostages in Bargain" (digitised). The Milwaukee Journal. Newspapers, Inc. 18 December 1973. pp. 1–2. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.

[tei-bleak-dec73-11] "It's a Bleak Christmas For Friends, Kin of Dead" (scanned). The Evening Independent. AP. 19 December 1973. p. 20 A. Retrieved 11 February 2015 – via news.google.com.

[asn-dec73-12] "Hijacking description: Monday 17 December 1973". aviation-safety.net. Flight Safety Foundation. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.

[13] "Hijackers kill 30 in airport bombing". Papua New Guinea Post-courier. International, Australia. 19 December 1973. p. 7. Retrieved 7 August 2021 – via National Library of Australia.

[sec-14] "TERRORISM: Death in Rome Aboard Flight 110". TIME. 102 (27): 87–108. 31 December 1973. Retrieved 17 May 2021.

[plo-15] "Gunmen Punished, P.L.O. Announces". The New York Times. 26 January 1975. p. A1. Retrieved 29 December 2011.

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show v t Prominent Palestinian militancy attacks in the 1970s
Within Israel	Avivim school bus massacre^* (May 22, 1970) Lod Airport massacre (May 30, 1972) Kiryat Shmona massacre^* (April 11, 1974) Ma'alot massacre^* (May 15, 1974) Nahariya attack^* (June 24–25, 1974) Beit She'an attack (November 19, 1974) Savoy Hotel Attack^* (March 6, 1975) Kfar Yuval hostage crisis^* (June 15, 1975) Zion Square refrigerator bombing (July 4, 1975) Coastal Road massacre^* (March 11, 1978) Nahariya massacre^* (April 22, 1979)
Within the Gaza Strip	Murder of the Aroyo children (January 2, 1971)
Aircraft attacks and hijackings	Swissair Flight 330 (February 21, 1970) Dawson's Field hijackings (6–13 September 1970) Lufthansa Flight 649 (February 22–23, 1972) Sabena Flight 571 (May 8, 1972) Lufthansa Flight 615 (October 29, 1972) Rome airport attacks and hijacking (December 17–18, 1973) TWA Flight 841 (September 8, 1974) Air France Flight 139 (June 27, 1976) Lufthansa Flight 181 (October 13–18, 1977)
Worldwide	Munich massacre (September 5–6, 1972) Israeli Bangkok embassy hostage crisis (December 28, 1972) Assassination of the Israeli attache in Washington (July 1, 1973) Schoenau ultimatum (September 28–29, 1973) Paris café attack (September 15, 1974) Orly Airport attacks (January, 1975) OPEC siege (December 21, 1975) Orly Airport attack (May 20, 1978) London bus attack (August 20, 1978)
^* Attacks launched from Lebanon 1960s 1980s