TWA Flight 847 was an international Trans World Airlines flight which was hijacked by Lebanese Shia Islamists on Friday morning, June 14, 1985, after originally taking off from Cairo, Egypt. The flight was en route from Athens, Greece to Rome, Italy, from where it was scheduled to travel on to London. The aircraft with its passengers and crew endured a three-day intercontinental ordeal during which one passenger, a U.S. Navy diver, was murdered. ...
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TWA Flight 847 was an international Trans World Airlines flight which was hijacked by Lebanese Shia Islamists on Friday morning, June 14, 1985, after originally taking off from Cairo, Egypt. The flight was en route from Athens, Greece to Rome, Italy, from where it was scheduled to travel on to London. The aircraft with its passengers and crew endured a three-day intercontinental ordeal during which one passenger, a U.S. Navy diver, was murdered. Dozens of passengers were then held hostage over the next two weeks, until released by their captors.
Piloted by 58-year-old Captain John Testrake, the Boeing 727, tail number N64339 , departed at 10:10 am, carrying 153 passengers and crew, including flight engineer Benjamin C. Zimmermann, co-pilot Philip G. Maresca, and flight attendant Uli Derickson.
It was commandeered shortly after takeoff by two German-speaking Lebanese men who had smuggled pistols and grenades through the Athens airport security. A third intended hijacker, Ali Atwa, had...
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