Neerja Bhanot Legacy

Neerja Bhanot, Ashoka Chakra was an Indian head purser who died while saving passengers on Pan Am Flight 73 which had been hijacked by terrorists during a stopover in Karachi, Pakistan, on 5 September 1986.

Neerja Bhanot was born on 7 September 1963, in Chandigarh, Punjab, India, to Rama Bhanot and Harish Bhanot, a Mumbai-based journalist. She was the couple’s third child, a much longed-for daughter after two sons, Akhil and Aneesh. She completed her high school from Bombay Scottish School and graduated from St. Xavier’s College. She was a vivacious young girl, sensitive, caring, and cheerful.

Neerja was around 18 years old when she was approached by a photographer outside her college for a modeling assignment. Once this ad was printed, Paville, a popular retail store, offered Neerja contacted for another modeling job. From then on, Neerja became a known face in several ad campaigns She got married shortly after her graduation, but the marriage proved to be a disaster. After being abused by her husband for dowry, she separated from him and focused her efforts on building a successful career for herself.

Pretty and confident, she undertook some modeling assignments and appeared in many television commercials and print advertisements for companies such as Benzersarees, Binaca toothpaste, Godrej Besto detergent, Vaporex, and Vicco Turmeric cream.

She then applied for a flight attendant's job with Pan Am, the principal and largest international air carrier in the United States at that time. There were nearly 10,000 applications, but Neerja was easily selected among the top 80. She was sent to Miami for training as a flight attendant and impressed her training instructors with her courage and zeal. She was soon made a senior flight purser with the airways—a big career achievement for a young woman of 22. On 5 September 1986, Neerja Bhanot was on duty in the Pan Am Flight 73, parked on the tarmac at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, preparing for take-off. The flight was flying from Mumbai to USA, carrying 361 passengers and 19 crew members.

All of a sudden, four armed men barged into the aircraft. Acting quickly, Neerja alerted the cockpit crew who evacuated the plane. Being the senior most staff on the hijacked aircraft, she took charge. The hijackers—part of the terrorist Abu Nidal Organization backed by Libya—wanted to fly to Israel and crash the plane against a building. But it was not possible as the cockpit crew had already escaped.

The passengers on the plane hailed from different countries, there were Indians, Germans, Americans, and Pakistanis, among others. The terrorists were more intent on targeting the Americans. When Neerja was told to collect the passports of the passengers, she hid the American ones so that the terrorists could not identify them. The nightmare on the aircraft continued for long. The hijackers opened fire after 17 hours, prompting Neerja to open the emergency door. She could have escaped first, but chose not to. Instead, she helped the passengers escape. She was shot when she was shielding three children from the terrorists’ bullets after hours of saving the lives of several hostages.

"She died so that others could live”

Neerja Bhanot got awarded “Ashoka Chakra” for her bravery. Ashoka Chakra is the highest award for the military in India. And also 'Justice for Crimes Award' awarded posthumously to her as part of the 'Annual Crime Rights Week'.

“Neerja Bhanot is a role model for young women as she displayed courage and devotion to duty.”

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