Latest news with #Flight103
Business Insider
a day ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Air India is suspending one of its US routes after Pakistan's airspace closure forced it to refuel in Europe
Air India is stopping one of its routes to the US, citing fewer available planes and longer flights caused by the monthslong partial closure of Pakistan's airspace. The flag carrier announced Monday that it plans to suspend flights between Delhi and Washington, DC, starting September 1. Since it was taken over by the Tata Group in 2022, Air India has undergone an ambitious transformation to expand and modernize. That includes upgrading planes with newer seats. Last month, it began retrofitting 26 of its Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which means several of them will be undergoing work at any given time until the end of next year. The airline has also faced difficulties with some of its routes since Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian carriers in late April, following regional conflict between the two countries. In Monday's announcement, it said this has resulted in "longer flight routings and increased operational complexity." Because some of its US routes already stretched the limits of their planes' maximum ranges, flying around Pakistan has required fuel stops. The Delhi-to-DC route, Flight 103, could previously fly directly north and over the Arctic Circle — but it has stopped to refuel in Vienna since April. That means what was once a roughly 15-hour flight now takes about 19 hours, including around 60 minutes on the ground in the Austrian capital. Air India said passengers who have already booked journeys between Delhi and Washington, DC, from September 1 would be offered a choice between rebooking on another flight or a full refund. The airline said it will still fly to four US airports: New York JFK, Newark, Chicago O'Hare, and San Francisco. Interline agreements with Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines mean passengers could get a connecting flight to Washington, DC, on the same ticket. However, all of these journeys now take longer since Air India has to fly around its neighboring country to reach the US. For example, Flight 101, from Delhi to JFK, takes about 16 hours — two hours longer than before the airspace closure. This route also made fuel stops in Europe for a few weeks, but has flown direct since mid-May.
Daily Mirror
29-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
Lockerbie suitcase in landmark DNA test that may put 'bomb maker' behind bars
Scientists are now looking at DNA discovered on the Lockerbie bomb suitcase The Lockerbie bomb suitcase has given up its DNA secrets, 37 years after the atrocity. Now scientists will test the sample for a match to a Libyan suspect facing trial in America for the terrorist attack. The bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in December 1988, killed 270 people in what was Britain's worst terror attack. The plane exploded less than 40 minutes after taking off from Heathrow, bound for New York. So far the only suspect to have been convicted of the crime is Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, a former Libyan intelligence officer who was jailed for life in 2001. But prosecutors maintain he acted with others in carrying out the attack. Megrahi was released by the Scottish government on compassionate grounds in 2009 after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. He lived for another 33 months, dying at his home in Tripoli, aged 60. His release angered many of the American relatives who want to see the next suspect face a US court. Now Abu Agila Masud is awaiting trial, accused of being the Libyan bomb maker behind the mass murders. He has been in US custody since December 2022 and has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Advances in technology have allowed Scottish scientists to gather DNA from the suitcase lining and an umbrella packed into the luggage before the mid-air explosion. Investigators believe the bomb was placed inside a radio packed in the suitcase. Prosecutors hope the new DNA sample could match Masud, 74. The Sunday Times says it has seen the US court papers which mention the potential breakthrough. Pam Am Flight 103 was flying from Heathrow to John F Kennedy Airport in New York four days before Christmas when it was destroyed above Scotland. A total of 259 passengers and crew, including three Irish citizens and 190 Americans, were killed onboard. Eleven residents from the town in Dumfries and Galloway died when wreckage fell to the ground. A co-defendant in Megrahi's 2000 trial, Lamin Khalifah Fhimah, another Libyan intelligence officer, 69, was acquitted, although he remains the subject of an active US arrest warrant. Masud's name came up in the original investigation when it was found the bomb had travelled in an unaccompanied suitcase from Malta to Heathrow, via Frankfurt, before being loaded onto Flight 103. However, investigators were unable to trace him. It was only after the fall of Colonel Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, in 2011 that Masud, a bomb-maker for the Libyan External Security Organisation, was detained by opposition forces. He was extradited to the US after allegedly confessing to building the Lockerbie bomb and taking it in a suitcase from Tripoli to Malta. His defence team are set to argue the confession was extracted in Libya under duress, and is therefore inadmissible. But the DNA sample could finally crack the case. The US court papers say Dr Nighean Stevenson had 'examined items relating to an umbrella and an item relating to the lining of a suitcase. These items were examined using specialised lighting, and DNA samples were taken from each. The DNA profiles obtained from these items were of varying quality and were generally commensurate with the expectations of these items." The document continues: "Analysis of a DNA reference sample relating to the accused nominal (Masud) has yet to be carried out. 'When a DNA profile relating to this individual has been generated, it will thereafter be compared to any suitable DNA profiles which have already been obtained." In theory, the tests could also prove whether convicted Megrahi had handled items packed into the bomb suitcase. Part of the evidence against him in 2001 revolved around the testimony of a Maltese shop owner, who claimed Megrahi had bought various items of clothing and an umbrella from his business days before the attack. Masud, in his alleged confession made in a Libyan jail in 2012, named both Megrahi and Fhimah as co-conspirators. A criminal complaint filed by the FBI states: "Approximately three months after (the bombing), Masud and Fhimah met with the then Libyan leader, Muammar Gadaffi, and others, who thanked them for carrying out a great national duty against the Americans, and Gadaffi added that the operation was a total success."
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Lockerbie-Syracuse scholarship scheme set to restart
A scholarship scheme - set up in the wake of the Lockerbie bombing - which sends Scottish school pupils to a US university is set to be revived. Two Lockerbie Academy students were selected to study at Syracuse University in New York state every year between 1989 and 2024 but no intake will happen in 2025/26. Thirty-five Syracuse students were among 270 victims of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in December 1988. The university has announced that the scholarship is now due to restart in autumn 2026 but it is unclear who will fund the programme. Previously, the Lockerbie students selected to spend a year at the US university were chosen by the Lockerbie Syracuse Trust (LST). The scheme was funded by both the university and the trust - with a contribution also understood to come from Dumfries and Galloway Council. There will been no intake for 2025/26 but Syracuse University has now relaunched the scheme, describing it as a "reimagined partnership". Students will be chosen by a panel of representatives from the university and the academy using "elevated selection criteria based on rigorous academic standards". The university said it would select students who demonstrate "academic excellence and a deep understanding" of the Pan Am Flight 103 tragedy. A press statement makes no mention of the LST and does not state how the scheme will be funded. Lockerbie: The town scarred by Pan Am flight 103 Lockerbie: Remembering the victims of Flight 103 Carolyne Wilson, who chairs the LST, said the funding situation had not been confirmed with them. "Previously, Syracuse University have funded part of it, and the trust has picked up the other part which equates to about £40,000 a year," she said. She said the LST would be happy for that arrangement to continue but it had not been approached to do so. "I think there would definitely need to be discussions between all parties because obviously we would love to strengthen and maintain our partnership with both Lockerbie Academy and Syracuse University to provide the best opportunities possible for the students of Lockerbie and the surrounding area," she added. Anna Newbould, one of the Lockerbie Academy scholars for 2024/25, said it was important to keep the link. "I think everyone would agree that it's incredibly important for this scholarship to continue, not just as an experience for the upcoming students but especially for the families of the victims who were sadly lost," she said. "Without the scholarship, the connection with Lockerbie, I believe, would only fade over time and ultimately it could be forgotten which is not something anyone wants. "Now more than ever, as the disaster is drifting further from the current generation, 36 years on, it's important to keep educating future generations and to keep the victims' memories alive." Brian Asher, head teacher at Lockerbie Academy, welcomed the move to re-establish the scholarship. He said: "Syracuse University has, since the terrible events of 21 December 1988, held a special place in the heart of Lockerbie. "We reforge our bond in honour of all those who were lost that night. "I am excited to work with our Syracuse University colleagues on behalf of the academy as we build on our shared past, towards a shared future." Syracuse University said the scheme would run until at least 2028.
