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21 December 1988 “Lockerbie-disaster”
At Wednesday 21 December 1988 at 18.25 hour PanAm B747-121A N739PA c/n 19646 flight PA103 departs flight PA103 from London Heathrow with destination New York, JFK airport with 259 passengers. After 54 minutes, the 747, named "Maid of the Seas", suddenly disappeared from the radar. The plane crashed from an altitude of 9300m mostly on the town of Lockerbie (a few thousand inhabitants), where about 40 houses and a gas station went up in flames. Sherwood Crescent is the hardest hit. There is a crater of 30m deep of 100 by 30 meters. A total of 11 people were killed on the ground. The wreckage was spread over 20 square kilometers. There was a large crater along the A47 motorway from Glascow to Carlisle.
The Panam-Jumbo was almost 19 years old, with 72,464 hours and 16,497 cycles on the clocks. It was the 15th 747-100 to be built. It was delivered to the PanAm in February 1970. At a distance of 120 km, a mail bag was found from the aircraft.
Attack is claimed by the pro-Iranian "Guardians of the Islamic Revolution" in retaliation for the downing of an Iranian Airbus over the Persian Gulf by the Americans. Around 27 Dec 1988 traces of an explosion were found for the first time, which must have taken place in the baggage hold at the front left of the aircraft. Later it turns out AVE4041 in container. On 28 December, it was definitively determined that this explosion was the cause of the accident. Calculations show that it took 7 minutes after the explosion for the debris to hit the ground, pathologists determined that a number of victims were still alive at that time.
Islamic Jihad and a Northern Irish group have also claimed responsibility for the attack. PLO leader Arafat deplores the disaster and denies involvement.
The U.S. Embassy in Helsinki had been warned weeks in advance of an attack on a PanAm flight from FRA to JFK in December!!
According to CBS in Feb 1989, Jibril's PFLP was behind the attack. This organization is financially supported by Libya and logistically by Syria. This organization is opposed to a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Arab conflict. It is one of the few organizations that has the technical knowledge for a complicated attack, such as the one on the PanAm-Boeing.
Above message regarding Holly Johnson, singer of Franky Goes to Hollywood, is incorrect, he was not on the flight.
The cost to PanAm of the disaster amounts to approximately NLG 100 million. In the 1st quarter of 1989, Panam suffered a loss of USD 151.1 million. Panam was fined USD 630000 by the FAA for failing to comply with safety regulations in September 1989.
Even before the attack, PanAm suffered losses because the Americans no longer dared to fly to Europe for fear of attacks after the American air attack on Libya. Because of this loss, PanAm had little money for security and a lot of it was done by poorly trained people and with inadequate equipment.
In October 1988 a number of radical Palestinians were arrested in Neuss (Isarstrasse 16, ,loc. 51°09’33.32”N 6°44’34.36”E ) in West Germany by the BKA (Bundes-Kriminal Ambt) "Operation Autumn Leaves", they belonged to the PFLP-GC (People's Front for the Liberation of Palestine- General Command, VBP-AC) led by the Syrian ex-army captain Ahmed Jibril (jibril had a quarrel with Gaddafi vk29apr00,
because of link PFLP and Libya!). They were preparing attacks on American targets. An air-pressure bomb was found. The PFLP had not been active since the early 1970s when it carried out spectacular attacks on Western airliners.
However, the BKA had heard from Israel that the group was preparing attacks again. An Arab greengrocer was located in the building at no.16. What was important was that Hafez Kassem Dalkamoni and Marwan Abdel Khreesat regularly visited here. Dalkamoni was a Syrian terrorist, and according to the Mossad, the leader of the European branch of the PFLP. He had lost one leg during a robbery, the BKA suspected that he had smuggled bomb detonators in his artificial leg! He was imprisoned in Israel from 1969-1979, he was released in a prisoner exchange.
Khreesat had arrived in Germany on October 13, along with his wife and 2 Samsonite suitcases. Dalkamoni later confessed that one case contained a black Toshiba "Bombeat" 453 radio-cassette recorder. Remains of a similar model were found among the rubble in Lockerbie.
According to his wife, Khreesat owned a TV repair shop in Amman, Jordan. In reality, he was one of the world's best (aircraft) bomb builders. According to the Italian secret service, he was the creator of a bomb that nearly blew up an Israeli El-Al airliner in 1972, a few minutes after Rome TO . The bomb exploded but the aircraft could make an emergency landing. (no data can be found in crash-file about this !?) The bomb consisted of a charge of ammonium nitrate hidden in a Philips record player. So the BKA was afraid that he was building a new bomb again, otherwise why would they have bought clocks, batteries, watches and glue? Both men were monitored 24 hours a day, the telephones were tapped.
On October 26, both men were arrested. In the trunk of the car, a Ford Taunus, was a Toshiba radio-cassette recorder, containing 300 grams of Semtex and a barometric ignition. That same day, arrests were also made in other cities, a total of 14 (or 17 vk29apr00) men were arrested and an arsenal of weapons was found, including an anti-tank gun, an underwater cannon ?, mortars, rifles, hand grenades, TNT and 5 kg of explosives. It seemed as if the BKA had prevented an attack and had broken up an important cell.
However, after 2 weeks, on November 10, Christian Rinne, investigating judge of the Federal Supreme Court in Karlsruhe, released Khreesat because there was insufficient evidence to link him to the arsenal, and no target or location for an attack had been found.
Khreesat disappeared without a trace, 7 weeks later the radio bomb exploded in the PanAm Boeing.
Marwan Khreesat.
The research center RARDE (Royal Armaments Research and Development Establishment) investigates the bomb and soon (in February 89 ?) finds out that the bomb was in a radio-cassette recorder of the brand Toshiba, type RT 8016 or RT 8026. The radio was in a brown Samsonite case, type Antique Copper System Four. Between 1985 and 1988, 3500 were made. The bomb itself had contained 350 to 400 grams of Semtex-H, the notorious odourless, malleable explosive, which is very popular with terrorists. The timing mechanism of the ignition was made by the Swiss company MeBo, which sold the devices to the Libyan secret service but also to the East German Stasi.
Toshiba RT8016, it is different to the bombeat453
From the outset, the British investigators thought there was a connection with the BKA's Autumn Leaves operation. In February 1989 the Commission was asked for all possible assistance. It soon becomes clear that the Germans are very reluctant to give information and try to prolong everything as long as possible. In April 1989, the files finally arrived at the investigative team in Lockerbie (130 detectives led by John Orr ). It emerged from this file that, during his detention in Germany, Khreesat had been in contact with Jordan by telephone and had received instructions from the Jordanian security service.
Did the BKA know he was a spy? And maybe he had even helped the BKA to be able to arrest Dalkamoni and his group and was therefore released after only 2 weeks!?
John Orr
The lock of the Samsonite bomb is found in the woods of Newcastleton. If the key is found, it could be a clue to the perpetrators. Among the approximately 10,000 items from the aircraft debris stored in a warehouse were more than 100 suitcase keys. After 48 hours, however, it turned out that none of them fit. Orr knew, however, that keys had also been confiscated in Operation Autumn Leaves. However, the BKA did not want to cooperate, first it was denied that keys had been found, according to which it would only be house keys and finally they turned out to be destroyed!
The British became convinced that Khreesat was the link to the solution and started a search. He was believed to be in Jordan. All attempts to get in touch through the intelligence services of Jordan and the CIA were frustrated for reasons that remain unclear. The secret services did not want too much to come to light. In addition, relations between the West and Syria (home base of PFLP) and Iran (revenge for the Airbus disaster) began to improve, so it would be annoying if the blame game would point in that direction.
In the meantime, the investigation began where the suitcase was loaded, on LHR or on FRA ? From subsequent explosions, the location of the bomb case in the container could be determined, from which it could be concluded that the suitcase was loaded in FRA. The Germans disagreed and began a counter-investigation. On the basis of the confiscated bomb, they came to the conclusion that the timer could be set to a maximum of 45 minutes, which would mean that the bomb would explode before the plane had landed on LHR.
In the loading list for the FRA-LHR flight, which the BKA had finally handed over to the British, a piece of baggage (no. S0009) with a handwritten cross in front of it was marked. This suitcase had arrived from Malta that morning on Air Malta flight KM180. However, there was no person on board the FRA-LHR flight from Malta! Investigations in Malta revealed that the clothes that were close to the bomb had been bought in Malta by a man who did not care about the size, colour or quality of the clothes!
The clothes were bought on 23 Nov 1988 by a Libyan of 1.75m tall, well dressed and shaved. The suitcase travelled without an owner.
Then a man named Abu Talb was arrested in Sweden who was suspected of involvement in attacks. A calendar was found in his flat, on which the day of the Lockerbie attack, of 21 December 1988, was circled. Talb, an agent of the Palestinian Armed Forces Front, had also been in Malta in the weeks leading up to the disaster, having visited a bakery, a front for a PFLP cell. A car with a Swedish license plate had also been spotted at the apartment in Neuss, owned by one of Talb's conspirators. In early December 1989, Talb became the first official suspect in the Lockerbie investigation.
According to vk29apr00 he was the bomb maker within the European PFLP (so not Khreesat ??) Talb was recognized by the Maltese shopkeeper as the buyer of the clothes that came with the bomb (and not the Libier Megrahi)!
Since 1992, a UN embargo has been in place against Libya because of the Lockerbie affair, because of Gaddafi's alleged involvement. Libya is being asked to extradite 2 suspects.
On April 15, 1986, the U.S. bombed Tripoli and Benghazi in retaliation for an attack on a discotheque in Berlin. It later turned out that the accusations against Libya were unfounded, but the U.S. has never been held accountable by the world. Libya's involvement is also controversial in the Lockerbie case. In 1989, all indications pointed in the direction of Syria and Iran. According to the Sunday Times, Iran would have paid USD 10 million to Jibril for the downing of an American plane.
Suddenly, in 1991, the CIA announced that it had "conclusive evidence" that Libya was guilty. The US and UK are demanding the extradition of two Libyan Arab Airlines employees who allegedly smuggled the bomb from Malta on board PA103.
The Iranian-Syrian connection was completely brushed aside and only Gaddafi was in the dock.
All this was much more convenient for America because of the end of the Gulf War in which Syria and Iran had shown their best side. Syria had also secured the release of the last Western hostages in Lebanon.
The evidence against the 2 LAA employees, a station manager in Valletta and his assistant, is very thin. The key witness is a former Libyan security agent, Abdul Majed Jaeka (or Abdel Majid Jiacha or Giaka vk22nov00), who has defected to the US. If the 2 suspects are convicted, he can look forward to a reward of 4 million usd! (vk24mar99). To the Scottish interrogators, however, he later proved to be much less tell-all than he had been to the FBI.
According to the Volkskrant 29Mar99, Khreesat is a double agent who is held in high esteem by the Western secret services.
At the beginning of 2000, the 2 Libyans were extradited for trial in the Netherlands, by Scottish judges. The trial takes place in "Kamp Zeist" at the former army base Soesterberg, (near the National Aviation Museum) in the Netherlands because Gaddafi demanded that the 2 people be tried in a neutral country. Their names are Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah (44) and Abdel Basset al-Megrahi (48), they are accused of placing a bomb in a Toshiba radio and then hiding it in a suitcase, which they took on a flight
to Frankfurt in Malta (where they worked at Luqa airport). Al-Megrahi worked for the Libyan secret service and travelled with fake passports. Fhimah was the station manager of Libyan Airlines and with his pass he could go anywhere at Luqa airport. The South African minister Pik Botha had been told an hour in advance that it was better not to board the Panam plane!? vvk29apr00
Pan Am 103 originated as a feeder flight at Frankfurt Airport , West Germany , using a Boeing 727 and the flight number PA103-A. So first loading the suitcase at Malta at KM180, departed Valetta at 9.45 hr , landing at FRA at 12.40 hr then manually unloading and loading the suitcase at FRA, (entered in the computer at 13.07 hr (number S0009) followed by manually loading and unloading on the 747-100 at LHR..if placed in Malta with the timer set, a big risk is taken if an delay would occur..
So if the bomb was placed at 09.00 hr at Malta on flight MA180, the timer had to be set for 10 hours (according BKA the bombs had timers which could be set for max 45 minutes !), to explode at 19.03 hr over Scotland. And then why it needs to be set with an barometric trigger..much more accurate to place it wit a barometric trigger and timer onboard the flight at LHR. And when with a barometric trigger the timer should be already activated shortly after the Air Malta airlines toke to the air…
To have a suitcase labelled for JFK with no actual passenger to slip trough check at Malta, FRA and LHR, even if the checks were not accurate still it seems if this is true the checks were really bad. Air Malta strongly contradicts the bomb was on board their flight to FRA…
The mechanism by which the explosive device was detonated included a long-delay electronic timer, type “MST-13,” manufactured by the Swiss firm of Meister et Bollier (“MEBO”).
As a Boeing 727 can not load an AVE ULD in its belly, the bomb must be manually put in AVE4041 ULD at LHR.
Panam 727-235 N4742 at Frankfurt, August 1988
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Test to check where the bomb was loaded in the ULD, revealed it to be not on the bottom but higher up among the transfer luggage originating from FRA. But because the ULD was loaded manually at LHR, somebody still could have placed it in between the other luggage at LHR in the AVE container, but then you need somebody inside, who has the means to do this undetected…
If the Samsonite suitcase was loaded in FRA, it does not fit with the max. 45 min timer for the bomb, or the timer could be set longer then 45 minutes ?? According Erwin Meister of MeBO the timer could be set at a fixed time in future ! If this is true, the bomb could also be loaded in Malta…
Loading the bomb at LHR sounds more logic, with the barometer setting the timer, but how did the bomb get at LHR ? It could have been taken there before on a ferry boat ? Khreesat had enough time for this..
And why if it was placed in LHR, was there clothing bought in Malta, found in Scotland; clothing that was very near the explosion, in the same suitcase ? If Abu Talb bought the clothing , Talb was recognized by the Maltese shopkeeper of Mary's House, Sliema in Malta, as the buyer of the clothes that came with the bomb , and not Al-Megrahi, he can be the bombmaker, using the timers delivered to Libya, with are of different type than Khreesat used, and Al-Megrahi helped to place it onboard the flight to FRA…but Abu Talb was not prosecuted for lack of proof for his involvement…and also Talb was granted immunity from prosecution
Taken from the bombing trial :
So it can be Khreesat used barometric + short time timers, while Abu Talb used the long-delay electronic timer, type “MST-13,” manufactured by the Swiss firm of Meister et Bollier (“MEBO”) ?, which were delivered to Libya (but also to east-German Stasi !) , and could be set for longer time without barometric trigger…
Plenty of questions remain unanswered and it will take probably many more years before there is more light in the darkness.
Casualties : James Fuller (VW), Lou Marengo (VW), John Mulroy (AP), Bernt Carlsson (UN), Daniel O’Conner, Sommerville family (Lockerbie), Major Charles “Chuck” McKee , Flora Swire (23), Karen Elisbeth Noonan
Witnesses of the crash : John Glasgow, Mike Carnahan, David Thomas, Graham Byerley, Wallace Trail (BBC), Cathy Gilmore, Marion Peel, George Gilston, John McGuinness, Ella Ramsden , Ailsa MacMillan, Father Patrick Keegans ,
Suspects : Ahmed Jibril (Syria, PFLP-GC), Jaswant Basuta (missed the plane), Steve Weinacker (missed the plane), Marwan Abdal Khreesat (Neuss, Syrian terrorist, bombmaker), Abdelbaset al-Megrahi (Libyan airlines, Malta, convicted), Hafez Kassem Dalkamoni (Syrian), Al-Amin Khalifa Fhimah (Libyan airlines, Malta, not sentenced), Abu Talb (bombmaker)
Investigators : John Boyd , Michael Charles , William Tench , John Orr , Alan Feraday (RARDE), Thomas Hayes (RARDE), Harry Bell (police detective), Stuart Henderson (police detective), Ian Armstrong (chief inspector)
Country leaders & officials : Roelof “Pik” Botha , Phyllis Oaklay (US), George H.W. Bush , R. Hirs (Rijkspolitie), (Alexander ?) Prechtel ( Bundeskriminal ambt BKA), Yasser Arafat (PLO), Michael Portillo (Minister of state for transport), Muammar Gaddafi (Libya), Ronald Reagan , Ali-Akbar Mohteshami (Iran), Hafez Assad (Syria), Kofi Annan (VN), William Cohen (US. Min. of defence)
Court : Professor Robert Black advocate, Abdul Majed Jaeka (witness, Libyan, CIA informer), William Taylor (lawyer), John Stuart Mowat (presided the inquiry), Lord Peter Fraser (indictment)
Other : Jack Gamble (Boeing), Holy Johnson (Frankie Goes To Hollywood), Robbie and Stuart Dodd ( Grange Quarry ), Alan Hyslop , Oliver Revell (FBI), Erwin Meister - Wikipedia (MeBo Telecommunications), David Johnston (writer), Victor Marchetti
(CIA & writer), George Stobbs (police), Manfred Klink (BKA), Christian Rinne (investigation judge, Karlsruhe), Paul Gauci (Malta), Tony Gauci (clothing shop Malta, brother of Paul), Noel Koch (US anti-terrorism)
Literature :
Reformatorisch Dagblad (rd.nl)
'Bomb-maker' brags about El Al blast, posts Lockerbie photos | The Times of Israel
Pan Am Flight 103 conspiracy theories - Wikipedia
Victims of Pan Am 103 (plane-truth.net)
Victor Marchetti – “The CIA and the cult of intelligence”
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