Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB/VCBI) Colombo, Sri Lanka
Destination
Male' International Airport
Occupants
148
Passengers
128
Crew
20
Fatalities
21
Injuries
41
Survivors
127
Air Lanka Flight 512 was an Air Lanka (now SriLankan Airlines) flight from London Gatwick Airport via Zurich and Dubai to Colombo (Bandaranaike International Airport) and Malé, Maldives (Velana International Airport). On 3 May 1986, the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar operated by Air Lanka was on the ground in Colombo, about to fly on to Malé, when an explosion ripped the aircraft in two, destroying it. The flight carried mainly French, West German, British and Japanese tourists; 21 people were killed on the aircraft, including 3 British, 2 West German, 3 French, 2 Japanese, 2 Maldivian, and 1 Pakistani. 41 people were injured.[1]
Boarding of the flight had been delayed due to the aircraft being damaged during cargo / baggage loading.[2] During boarding, a bomb, hidden in the aircraft's 'Fly Away Kit' (a collection of small spare parts[3]), exploded.[4] The bomb had been timed to detonate mid-flight; the delay likely saved many lives.
The Sri Lankan government concluded that the bomb was planted by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to sabotage peace talks between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government. They reported that a search of the aircraft the next day uncovered a parcel containing uniforms with the insignia of the Black Tigers, the suicide wing of LTTE.[1][5]
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^ ab"1986: Bomb kills 21 in Sri Lanka". BBC. 3 May 1986. Retrieved 30 April 2008.
^A joke common among international travelers at the time was that AirLanka's IATA code, UL, stood for "usually late".
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