Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport
Encyclopedia
Prince Said Ibrahim
International Airport is an international airport
located in Moroni
, Comoros
.
, an Airbus A310
, flight number IY626, departed from Sana'a International Airport
in Sana'a
, Yemen
, en route to Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport. Reportedly with 11 crew and 142 passengers aboard, including 66 French nationals, the aircraft crashed into the Indian Ocean on approach to the destination airport.
On November 23, 1996, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961
was hijacked by three men seeking political assylum, demanding that the Boeing 767-260
be flown to Australia
. Captain Abate told them that the aircraft was capable of the flight, but they would have to land and refuel. The hijackers thought he was lying. Abatae hoped to land at this airport, but had already run out of fuel and the Boeing 767 crash-landed in the ocean off the coast of the island. Only 50 out of 175 survived, because the surviving passengers had heard Captain Abate's instructions to put life vests on, but don't inflate them. The passengers who didn't survive likely inflated them and drowned under the wreckage. The aircraft was on a flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi.
While the runway is considered long enough for modern jetliners, landings can still prove difficult because of frequently changing weather conditions and the surrounding mountains of the island.
Said Ibrahim of Grand Comore
Prince Said Ibrahim was a politician in the Comoros islands of the western Indian Ocean. He was the son of Sultan Said Ali, sultan of Grande Comore....
International Airport is an international airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
located in Moroni
Moroni, Comoros
-References:...
, Comoros
Comoros
The Comoros , officially the Union of the Comoros is an archipelago island nation in the Indian Ocean, located off the eastern coast of Africa, on the northern end of the Mozambique Channel, between northeastern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar...
.
Airlines and destinations
Accidents and Incidents
On June 30, 2009, Yemenia Flight 626Yemenia Flight 626
Yemenia Flight 626 was an Airbus A310-324 twin-engine jet airliner, operated by Yemenia, operating as a scheduled international flight from Sana'a, Yemen, to Moroni, Comoros, that crashed on 30 June 2009 at around 1:50 a.m. local time while on approach to Prince Said Ibrahim International...
, an Airbus A310
Airbus A310
The Airbus A310 is a medium- to long-range twin-engine widebody jet airliner. Launched in July 1978, it was the second aircraft created by Airbus Industrie,a consortium of European aerospace companies, Airbus is now fully owned by EADS and since 2001 has been known as Airbus SAS. the consortium of...
, flight number IY626, departed from Sana'a International Airport
Sana'a International Airport
Sana'a International Airport or El Rahaba Airport is an international airport located in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen. The runway is shared with a large military base with several fighter jets and transport aircraft of the Yemeni Air Force.-Airlines and destinations:*Note: All flights operate...
in Sana'a
Sana'a
-Districts:*Al Wahdah District*As Sabain District*Assafi'yah District*At Tahrir District*Ath'thaorah District*Az'zal District*Bani Al Harith District*Ma'ain District*Old City District*Shu'aub District-Old City:...
, Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, en route to Prince Said Ibrahim International Airport. Reportedly with 11 crew and 142 passengers aboard, including 66 French nationals, the aircraft crashed into the Indian Ocean on approach to the destination airport.
On November 23, 1996, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961, a Boeing 767-260ER, was hijacked on , en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi on a Bombay–Addis Ababa–Nairobi–Brazzaville–Lagos–Abidjan service, by three Ethiopians seeking political asylum in Australia. The plane crash-landed in the Indian Ocean near Comoros due to fuel...
was hijacked by three men seeking political assylum, demanding that the Boeing 767-260
Boeing 767
The Boeing 767 is a mid-size, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It was the manufacturer's first wide-body twinjet and its first airliner with a two-crew glass cockpit. The aircraft features two turbofan engines, a supercritical wing, and a conventional tail...
be flown to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Captain Abate told them that the aircraft was capable of the flight, but they would have to land and refuel. The hijackers thought he was lying. Abatae hoped to land at this airport, but had already run out of fuel and the Boeing 767 crash-landed in the ocean off the coast of the island. Only 50 out of 175 survived, because the surviving passengers had heard Captain Abate's instructions to put life vests on, but don't inflate them. The passengers who didn't survive likely inflated them and drowned under the wreckage. The aircraft was on a flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi.
While the runway is considered long enough for modern jetliners, landings can still prove difficult because of frequently changing weather conditions and the surrounding mountains of the island.