JAT Flight 364
Encyclopedia
JAT Yugoslav Airlines Flight 367 was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 aircraft (registration YU-AHT) which exploded shortly after overflying NDB
Hermsdorf, East Germany, while en route from Stockholm
to Belgrade
on 26 January 1972. The aircraft, piloted by captain Ludvig Razdrih, broke into two pieces and spun out of control, crashing near the village of Srbská Kamenice
in Czechoslovakia
(now the Czech Republic
). 27 of 28 of those on board were killed upon ground impact; but one crew member, Vesna Vulović
, survived.
Vesna Vulović
was near the rear of the aircraft at the time of the explosion. The tailcone of the aircraft was torn away from the main fuselage and both fell from 10,160 meters (33,000 feet) before impact with the ground. A food cart pinned her to the back of the plane during her fall, acting as a seat belt, thus preventing her from being sucked out of the plane during de-compression or the ensuing fall. Some reports stated she was at the back when the explosion occurred, but she has said she was told that she had been found in the middle section of the plane.
Vulović was in a coma for 27 days and was temporarily paralyzed from the waist down, but survived. She continued working for the airline, holding a desk job.
holds the official record in the Guinness Book of Records for the highest fall
survived without a parachute. Vulović received the Guinness prize from Paul McCartney
.
A major celebrity in SFRY, Vesna Vulović was a frequent guest at major Yugoslav TV shows such as Maksovizija by Milovan Ilić Minimaks
, up until the 1990s. Vulović attended annual commemorations at the crash site, until they were stopped in 2002. The daughter of the firefighter that saved her bears her name, as well as the local hotel in Czech Republic, near the site of the crash.
The plane crash was a subject of MythBusters
. Episode 37, "Escape Slide Parachute (Story of Vesna Vulović)" was devoted to her case. The MythBusters concluded it was possible to survive the fall depending on how the wreckage someone was sitting in landed. Discovery Channel
in their programme Against all Odds also profiled Vulović's fall to earth.
Most recently, the discussion about different aspects of the crash was reopened on 8 January 2009, when German news magazine Tagesschau featured a report by investigative journalists Peter Hornung and Pavel Theiner. Based on newly obtained documents mainly from the Czech Civil Aviation Authority, they concluded that it was extremely likely that the plane had been mistakenly shot down only a few hundred meters above the ground by a MiG
fighter of the Czechoslovak Air Force
, having been mistaken for an enemy aircraft while attempting a forced landing
. As evidence that the DC-9 had broken up at a lower altitude, the report cited eyewitnesses from Srbská Kamenice, who had seen the plane burning but still intact below the low-hanging clouds, and confirmation of a Serbian aviation expert (who had been present at the crash site) that the debris area had been much too small for a crash from high altitude; it also referred to sightings of a second plane. According to Hornung, flight 367 got into difficulties, "went into a steep descent and found itself over a sensitive military area", close to a nuclear weapons facility. The Czech Civilian Aviation Authority dismissed the claims as media sensationalism, that occurs from time to time, while Vesna Vulović (who has no memory of the crash or the flight after boarding) referred to the claims that the plane attempted a forced landing or descended to such low altitude as a "nebulous nonsense". A representative of Guinness World Records
stated that "it seems that at the time Guinness was duped by this swindle just like the rest of the media."
Non-directional beacon
A non-directional beacon is a radio transmitter at a known location, used as an aviation or marine navigational aid. As the name implies, the signal transmitted does not include inherent directional information, in contrast to other navigational aids such as low frequency radio range, VHF...
Hermsdorf, East Germany, while en route from Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
to Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
on 26 January 1972. The aircraft, piloted by captain Ludvig Razdrih, broke into two pieces and spun out of control, crashing near the village of Srbská Kamenice
Srbská Kamenice
Srbská Kamenice is a village in the Czech Republic, Ústí nad Labem Region.It was founded in early 11th century by Sorbs, refugees from Germany after a military campaign of Henry II. In 2005, it had 206 inhabitants...
in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
(now the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
). 27 of 28 of those on board were killed upon ground impact; but one crew member, Vesna Vulović
Vesna Vulovic
Vesna Vulović is a Serbian former flight attendant. She holds the world record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: .-Plane explosion:...
, survived.
Cause
The Yugoslav government immediately accused Croatian far-right terrorists of planting a bomb on the plane, and the site was sealed off from the media for 24 hours. However, nobody ever claimed responsibility for the bombing, no arrests were ever made, and the cause continues to be controversial.Vesna Vulović
Vesna Vulovic
Vesna Vulović is a Serbian former flight attendant. She holds the world record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: .-Plane explosion:...
was near the rear of the aircraft at the time of the explosion. The tailcone of the aircraft was torn away from the main fuselage and both fell from 10,160 meters (33,000 feet) before impact with the ground. A food cart pinned her to the back of the plane during her fall, acting as a seat belt, thus preventing her from being sucked out of the plane during de-compression or the ensuing fall. Some reports stated she was at the back when the explosion occurred, but she has said she was told that she had been found in the middle section of the plane.
Vulović was in a coma for 27 days and was temporarily paralyzed from the waist down, but survived. She continued working for the airline, holding a desk job.
In popular culture
Vesna VulovićVesna Vulovic
Vesna Vulović is a Serbian former flight attendant. She holds the world record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: .-Plane explosion:...
holds the official record in the Guinness Book of Records for the highest fall
Free fall
Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...
survived without a parachute. Vulović received the Guinness prize from Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
.
A major celebrity in SFRY, Vesna Vulović was a frequent guest at major Yugoslav TV shows such as Maksovizija by Milovan Ilić Minimaks
Milovan Ilić Minimaks
Milovan Ilić Minimaks was a Serbian radio and TV journalist.He was born on 5 November 1938 in Lipnici, Kragujevac, Serbia. He completed primary and secondary school in Kragujevac, and studied law in Belgrade...
, up until the 1990s. Vulović attended annual commemorations at the crash site, until they were stopped in 2002. The daughter of the firefighter that saved her bears her name, as well as the local hotel in Czech Republic, near the site of the crash.
The plane crash was a subject of MythBusters
MythBusters
MythBusters is a science entertainment TV program created and produced by Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The series is screened by numerous international broadcasters, including Discovery Channel Australia, Discovery Channel Latin America, Discovery Channel Canada, Quest...
. Episode 37, "Escape Slide Parachute (Story of Vesna Vulović)" was devoted to her case. The MythBusters concluded it was possible to survive the fall depending on how the wreckage someone was sitting in landed. Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
in their programme Against all Odds also profiled Vulović's fall to earth.
Challenges to the official cause
The officially stated cause of the crash was challenged on numerous occasions over the years.Most recently, the discussion about different aspects of the crash was reopened on 8 January 2009, when German news magazine Tagesschau featured a report by investigative journalists Peter Hornung and Pavel Theiner. Based on newly obtained documents mainly from the Czech Civil Aviation Authority, they concluded that it was extremely likely that the plane had been mistakenly shot down only a few hundred meters above the ground by a MiG
Mig
-Industry:*MiG, now Mikoyan, a Russian aircraft corporation, formerly the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau*Metal inert gas welding or MIG welding, a type of welding using an electric arc and a shielding gas-Business and finance:...
fighter of the Czechoslovak Air Force
Czechoslovak Air Force
The Czechoslovak Air Force was the air force branch of the military of Czechoslovakia. It was known as the Czechoslovak Army Air Force from 1918–1939...
, having been mistaken for an enemy aircraft while attempting a forced landing
Forced landing
A forced landing is a landing by an aircraft made under factors outside the pilot's control, such as the failure of engines, systems, components or weather which makes continued flight impossible. For a full description of these, see article on Emergency landing...
. As evidence that the DC-9 had broken up at a lower altitude, the report cited eyewitnesses from Srbská Kamenice, who had seen the plane burning but still intact below the low-hanging clouds, and confirmation of a Serbian aviation expert (who had been present at the crash site) that the debris area had been much too small for a crash from high altitude; it also referred to sightings of a second plane. According to Hornung, flight 367 got into difficulties, "went into a steep descent and found itself over a sensitive military area", close to a nuclear weapons facility. The Czech Civilian Aviation Authority dismissed the claims as media sensationalism, that occurs from time to time, while Vesna Vulović (who has no memory of the crash or the flight after boarding) referred to the claims that the plane attempted a forced landing or descended to such low altitude as a "nebulous nonsense". A representative of Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
stated that "it seems that at the time Guinness was duped by this swindle just like the rest of the media."
See also
- List of accidents and incidents involving airliners by airline
- Vesna VulovićVesna VulovicVesna Vulović is a Serbian former flight attendant. She holds the world record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: .-Plane explosion:...
- Nicholas Alkemade (RAF gunner who survived a fall of 18,000 feet)
