Neerja Bhanot: The Indian Flight Attendant Who Sacrificed Her Life to Save Passengers

Nearly four decades ago, Indian flight attendant Neerja Bhanot found herself in a life-threatening situation aboard Pan Am Flight 73. On September 5, 1986, the Mumbai-New York flight, with a stopover in Karachi, was hijacked by four armed members of the Abu Nidal Organisation while it was on the ground at Karachi airport. Neerja, who was serving as the senior flight purser, immediately alerted the cockpit crew, allowing them to escape and preventing the hijackers from taking control of the aircraft. She also concealed the passports of American passengers so the hijackers could not easily identify them. The ordeal continued for around 17 hours.

When the aircraft eventually lost power, Neerja opened an emergency exit and began helping passengers escape. As the hijackers opened fire, she continued assisting those on board instead of fleeing to safety. According to accounts of the incident, she was shot while shielding three children from the gunfire. Neerja died on September 5, 1986, just two days before her 23rd birthday. Her extraordinary courage was recognised posthumously with the Ashoka Chakra, and her story later inspired the 2016 Hindi film Neerja, starring Sonam Kapoor.