Pilot's Genius Move After Engines Fail Has People Calling Him A Hero
While the passengers of Ural Airlines Flight 178 sat back and relaxed in their seats, crew members scrambled to get everything ready for takeoff. It was always a busy job. That day in 2019, however, one pilot had to go above and beyond the call of duty during one of his recent flights. When facing incredible danger aboard his failing plane, he had to think quickly if he wanted to save all 226 passengers.
A pro pilot
Forty-one-year-old Captain Damir Yusupov was an experienced pilot getting ready for another routine day at the office. In his case, however, the office was the cockpit of Ural Airlines Flight 178. Soon, that flight number would be known worldwide.
Planned route
Yusupov settled into his seat and checked the flight itinerary. He and his copilot had an early morning trip, heading south from Moscow's Zhukovsky Airport to the popular vacation destination of Simferopol, Crimea. They had every reason to expect a routine passage — at first.
Seemingly perfect
It was a short route and one that Yusupov had flown countless times before. The weather was clear, too; everything, it seemed, was shaping up for an easy day of work.
Hitting the runway
All the pre-flight checks were taken care of, so Yusupov got the go-ahead to push back from the gate. Slowly, his plane joined the line-up and began to move towards the runway.
Warning sign
After being cleared for take off, Yusupov pushed the throttle forward. The engines roared to life as the journey began. Passengers in the cabin, however, immediately realized something had gone wrong.
Weird movements
As the plane started to rise, it suddenly lurched forward. Passengers heard strange noises coming from outside their windows and a burning smell wafted through the cabin. Panic began to spread.
Going haywire
In the cockpit, countless warning indicators were going off. Yusupov knew that while time was of the essence, he had to remain calm. The pilot immediately tried to diagnose the issue.
Engine damage
He realized that the plane was struggling to stay aloft, meaning that something had damaged the engines! That explained the strange noises and smoky smell, but also meant everyone was in grave danger.
Losing altitude
The plane had just left the airport but, without engines, it was already dropping towards the treeline. Yusupov knew he had to think quickly to avoid a massive aviation disaster.
Needing assistance
At this point, he needed some help from air traffic control. The pilot got on the radio and tried to calmly explain the emergency. He also asked for permission to try a daring maneuver.
Attempting a landing
The engines were dead, but Yusupov thought there was enough residual momentum to return to the airport. With air traffic control's blessings, he banked his plane back towards the runway.
Not good
The turn was a little rough, but the plane was now headed back towards the airport. Yusupov was in the clear! But then he looked down at the altimeter; his stomach immediately dropped.
Running out of rope
The plane was falling much faster than he expected. A terrible reality started to set in; there was no way they could make it back to the runway. A crash was inevitable.
Crash landing preparations
Yusupov scanned the ground below. If the plane was going to crash, he wanted to minimize the damage. Even if everyone aboard perished, there was no need to spread the carnage by landing in a neighborhood.
Into a field
He spotted a cornfield below and swallowed hard. That was the perfect spot to land before hitting civilization. Yusupov braced himself and began to guide his plane towards the ground for one final landing.
Brace for impact
Without landing gear or engine power, the plane slammed into the dirt and skidded across the field. After a few moments, Yusupov realized that he had survived. But what about his passengers?
No casualties
Miraculously, all 226 passengers and seven crew members were OK. While there were a few minor injuries, Yusupov had saved everyone's life! But one question still remained: what happened to the engines?
Clipped wings
An investigation revealed that a flock of seagulls flew in front of the plane during takeoff. The birds were sucked into the jet engines, jamming the turbines and cutting off power.
Decorated pilots
Understandably, Yusupov was hailed as a hero for his lifesaving grace under pressure. Both he and his copilot were nominated for a state award, but their true pride came from keeping their passengers safe.
"A really good day"
“Today is a really good day,” Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said. "Let us offer our wishes for a speedy recovery to those who were injured and congratulate the heroic pilots for saving people’s lives and landing the plane.” Up in the air, ordinary people like Yusupov have to step up and become heroes, and in the wake of his triumph, many people reminisced about an earlier incident in which one woman — who wasn't even a pilot — came face-to-face with disaster.
Up in the air
It was September 5, 1986, and tensions were rising on board the grounded Pan Am Flight 73. A group of terrorists had hijacked the aircraft, and their patience was wearing thin. All of the flight attendants tried their best to keep a lid on the chaos, but one in particular was forced to make a devastating split-second decision. Her name was Neerja Bhanot.
Bhanot’s early years
Now, before Bhanot became a flight attendant for Pan Am, she had a pretty eventful life. Following her birth in September 1963, the youngster grew up in Chandigarh, India, with her family. But as she entered her teenage years, she packed her bags and opted for a change of scenery.
College enrollment
Yes, Bhanot made a new home in Mumbai, India, during that spell. And as she continued to get older, the teenager also went on to earn a spot at St. Xavier’s College. Exciting times, right? Mind you, things then took an interesting turn after someone spotted her walking around the school grounds.
Modeling work
Who was it? Well, the person in question was a camera operator, and they recognized some potential in Bhanot. So after that chance encounter, she tried her hand in the world of modeling. And she had some success, as the talented Mumbai resident worked with brands such as Vaporex across that period.
The arranged marriage...and divorce
When it came to her home life, though, Bhanot’s path seemed to be set in stone. You see, she consented to a preplanned marriage, which eventually took place in March 1985. Yet their union didn’t last too long. Within a couple of months, she realized that her new husband had a cruel streak, so she dumped him.
A career change
But that wasn’t the only significant decision that Bhanot made at the time. Her next move was to apply for a new job – that of an air hostess. Sounds like a whirlwind spell! Then again, the former student had to contend with a lot of competition to bag the role.
You’re hired!
Bhanot was competing with around 10,000 other hopefuls. Wow. What happened next then? Luckily for the Mumbai resident, her modeling experience may well have worked in her favor, as the decision-makers could have picked up on her composure and self-assurance. Thanks to that, she got the job with Pan Am.
The Abu Nidal Organization
While Bhanot was going through all that to score the role, though, something else was brewing in the background. Yep, a Palestinian terrorist group known as the Abu Nidal Organization was becoming more and more dangerous, directing its anger at various parties. Along with Israel, America bore the brunt of its fury.
Collision course
Why’s that? Simple really – America refused to oppose the incarceration of insurgents from Palestine. As a result of that, the group eventually hatched a plan that put them on a collision course with Bhanot and her colleagues at Pan Am. So that brings us back to that fateful day in September 1986.
The original flight plan
It started like any other day at work for Bhanot. Her airplane, Pan Am Flight 73, was getting ready to leave Karachi, Pakistan, after a stop-off. Their journey had begun in Mumbai, and was set to conclude once they touched down in New York. The aircraft also had another break planned in Germany before reaching the final destination.
Wolves in sheep’s clothing
Anyway, as the time approached 6:00 a.m. a vehicle appeared on the runway, speeding towards the plane. According to BBC News, the four occupants were dressed in airport security garb. But it soon became clear that these guys weren’t who they appeared to be, and that was bad news for everyone.
The terrorist plot
Yes, the quartet were part of the Abu Nidal Organization, and they aimed to take control of the aircraft. From there, the group were plotting to fly to both Cyprus and Israel, so they could break out insurgents who were incarcerated. Mind you, it didn’t take long for those plans to be torn up thanks to Bhanot and the crew.
Raising the alarm
Bhanot was able to share the message that hijackers were coming on board with one of her colleagues, Sherene Pavan. Then, as the guys began to shoot their weapons after walking through the door, Pavan contacted the pilot. Once he answered, she gave him the signal that the aircraft had been compromised.
The hijackers’ next move
At that stage, a different member of the cabin crew named Sunshine Vesuwala noticed that Bhanot had been apprehended by the terrorists. They were well armed, carrying weapons such as grenades and AK-47s. So, Vesuwala didn’t have much choice when one of them demanded to enter the cockpit, which led to a surprising sight.
An empty cockpit
Speaking to BBC News in March 2016, Vesuwala recalled, “I noticed immediately that the escape devices in the cockpit had been deployed. I noticed that the evacuation hatch on the ceiling of the cockpit was open, but I pretended not to. I wanted to give the pilots time to escape in case they were still in the process of climbing down the ropes outside the plane.”
“We were all safer on the ground”
“The hijacker didn’t seem to know much about the plane so he didn’t look for it,” Vesuwala continued. “Many have criticized the pilots for leaving the rest of the crew behind, but I was relieved when I saw they were gone, as we were all safer on the ground than we would be in the air.”
“We weren’t at the mercy of the terrorists”
One of Vesuwala’s colleagues concurred with that assessment, too. Dilip Bidichandani told BBC News, “The pilots evacuating the airplane meant that we weren’t at the mercy of the terrorists, who could’ve instructed the plane to be flown into a building, or even blown up whilst in flight.” But there was no time to celebrate that significant victory.
Rajesh Kumar
You see, as Karachi’s Pan Am boss Viraf Doroga negotiated with the terrorists from the runway, he promised to find some new pilots. Nothing changed after 60 minutes, so they grabbed a passenger from the United States named Rajesh Kumar. Tragically, he was murdered and tossed off the aircraft as a response.
The next stage
And the situation didn’t get any better as more hours passed by. At that point, the terrorists told the flight attendants to grab every passport on the plane. Why? Well, they wanted to pick out and target other people from the United States. Yet once again, Bhanot and her co-workers stepped up to foil those plans.
Bhanot’s quick thinking
Smartly, Bhanot made sure to conceal the American passports she picked up, telling the flight crew to do the same. It was an incredibly bold move, with one of the passengers touching upon the decision in a book he later wrote. His name is Mike Thexton.
“Brave, selfless and clever”
Thexton, who penned What Happened to The Hippy Man? following the ordeal, wrote, “[The decision was] extremely brave, selfless and clever. I may be biased, but I feel that day proved that the flight attendants on board were some of the best in the industry.” So what happened after the passports were hidden?
Tension
Thankfully, Bhanot and company were able to convince the terrorists that no other U.S. citizens were on the plane. Yet the tension didn’t ease up. While the former model tried to allay people’s fears by handing out food and beverages, two of her colleagues were really in the thick of it.
Human shields
Yes, Vesuwala and Pavan were often pulled aside by the leader of the group – a man named Zaid Hassan Abd Latif Safarini. Safarini forced them to act as protective barriers whenever he went to the cockpit. Pavan told BBC News, “He would hold my hair, force my face to the window and ask what I could see. He was looking for American fighter planes.”
Horrifying threats
Unfortunately for all concerned, the situation remained on a knife edge for a very long time. The hours continued to pass, and a pilot still hadn’t been provided to the hijackers. It even got to the point where they warned the authorities that they’d start executing people after timed intervals.
Darkness
But as the people on board entered the 17th hour of the ordeal, something happened. After Sarafini had been informed that the airplane’s power supply was running low, everything soon shut off. The interior was now bathed in shadow. Sounds terrifying, right? And it only got worse, as the hijackers then went mad.
“A war cry”
As Vesuwala recalled to BBC News, “[The terrorists] had lost patience. They let out a war cry, and began firing into the crowd. There were huge streaks of light breaking the darkness. And screams.” Mind you, while that was going on, a trio of doors had somehow become unlocked, offering the passengers an escape route.
Split-second act
There isn’t a definitive answer to who got each exit open, but All That’s Interesting claims that Bhanot was responsible for one. Yep, it’s believed that thanks to a split-second decision, she braved the gunfire to unlock a door. As a result of that, people started to pour out of the plane to save their lives.
Stuck on the wing
Some of the crew managed to get out as well, including Vesuwala and Bidichandani. They both found themselves on the aircraft’s wing, as the inflatable chute hadn’t been released at the nearby exit. Then, the pair noticed that one of the others was in use, so they returned to the interior.
Making an escape
At that stage, Bidichandani, Vesuwala, Pavan and a fellow co-worker helped the fleeing masses reach the shoot to safety. How brave of them! Then again, if you thought that was gutsy, wait until you hear this. Once it looked like most of the people had been evacuated, the flight attendants crawled back up into the airplane.
Finding Bhanot
The shooting appeared to have ceased at that stage, so the workers took their chance to search for more passengers. As they made their way in, Vesuwala then spotted Bhanot on the ground. Sadly, she’d been hit by one of the terrorist’s bullets while she tried to get people off the airplane, ignoring the chance to flee herself.
She was badly hurt
The gunshot wound was in Bhanot’s hip area, and it’s said she was losing blood fast. Despite that, though, she hadn’t fallen unconscious. On that note, Vesuwala and Bidichandani carefully lifted their injured comrade to the exit, putting her on the slide. But something else started to dawn on them.
A worrying scene
Bidichandani informed BBC News, “I didn’t see medical facilities at the airport besides minor first aid. The hospital was several kilometres away from the airport. Neerja was put into the ambulance without a stretcher.” It didn’t get much better when they arrived at their destination, either, ahead of some devastating news.
Bhanot’s death
Tragically, Bhanot died from her injuries at the hospital in Karachi, just a couple of days before she turned 23. Describing the scene, Vesuwala said, “It was chaotic, like a war zone, in there. Neerja may still be alive if she’d been cared for right away.” Pavan concurred, adding, “Neerja’s life may have been saved were conditions in the hospital better.”
Tragic numbers
Talk about a gut-punch. Who knows what might’ve happened if things weren’t so frantic there? In the end, Bhanot was among the 22 who lost their lives during the ordeal, while around 150 more were wounded. It was a truly horrible event. But that’s got us wondering – what happened to the hijackers?
The hijackers’ fates
Well, the authorities soon picked up the four men. And an additional person was arrested for their part in the plot too. The quintet faced charges from the Pakistani court system, before a member of the group was sent to an American jail to do some time.
Freedom?
As for the rest of them, they were sent back to Palestine to serve their own sentences after the tragic events in 1986. Don’t relax yet, though – those four individuals were eventually let out of jail in 2008. They’ve been free men ever since. Who saw that coming?
Honoring Bhanot
Anyway, let’s switch our focus back to Bhanot now. You see, her actions on board Pan Am Flight 73 have left a lasting impression. To give you some examples, The Pan Am Historical Foundation website noted that the crew member received the Ashoka Chakra award in 1987. That’s “India’s highest civilian decoration for bravery.”
Recognition
On top of that, Bhanot was the only lady to receive that honor at the time as well. That’s quite an achievement, right? From there, she had her own stamp commissioned in India in 2004, while the U.S. Department of Justice also recognized her efforts a couple of years later.
Neerja
Yes, the organization posthumously gave Bhanot 2006’s Special Courage Award. You can’t say she didn’t deserve the recognition. Plus, her legacy was further cemented in 2016 when a film was made about her and the hijacking incident. It was simply titled Neerja, with Sonam Kapoor taking on the title role.
A lasting legacy
The movie proved to be a hit, earning over $17.6 million at the global box office off a predicted budget of $2.9 million. Meanwhile, Bhanot’s memory continues to be preserved on social media too, on The Neerja Bhanot Page. That Facebook account has close to 7,700 followers at present. So the flight attendant may be gone, but she’s certainly not forgotten.
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