Safe landing following a small explosion and fire in the main cabin
Aircraft
Aircraft type
Airbus A330-323E
Operator
Northwest Airlines
IATA flight No.
NW253
ICAO flight No.
NWA253
Call sign
NORTHWEST 253
Registration
N820NW[1]
Flight origin
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
Destination
Detroit Metropolitan Airport
Occupants
290
Passengers
279[2]
Crew
11[2]
The attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 occurred on December 25, 2009, aboard an Airbus A330 as it prepared to land at Detroit Metropolitan Airport following a transatlantic flight from Amsterdam. Attributed to the terrorist organization al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the act was undertaken by 23-year-old Nigerian national Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab using chemical explosives sewn to his underwear.[3] These circumstances, including the date, led to Abdulmutallab being commonly nicknamed either the "Underwear bomber"[4] or "Christmas Day bomber" by American media outlets. It also could have been the worst plane crash in the history of Michigan beating out Northwest Airlines Flight 255.
The event was the second airliner bombing attempt in the United States in eight years, following the 2001 American Airlines Flight 63 bombing attempt. If successful, the attack would have surpassed American Airlines Flight 191 as the deadliest airplane crash on U.S. soil and tied Iran Air Flight 655 as the eighth-deadliest of all time. It was also the second event in 2009 involving an Airbus A330 (after the June 1 crash of Air France Flight 447), and the final operational occurrence for Northwest Airlines (preceding that airline's merger with Delta Air Lines) the following month.
For his role in the plot, Abdulmutallab was convicted as a civilian criminal in US federal court and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.[5] AQAP leader Anwar al-Awlaki, who reportedly inspired Abdulmutallab and "masterminded" the attack,[6] was killed two years later as the target of a drone strike in Yemen.
^"FAA Registry (N820NW)". Federal Aviation Administration.
^ ab"Indictment in U.S. v. Abdulmutallab" (PDF). CBS News. January 6, 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2010. ()
^Daragahi, Borzou (January 24, 2010). "Bin Laden takes responsibility for Christmas Day bombing attempt". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 7, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
^"I hope to see him in my lifetime — Abdul Mutallab, billionaire father of jailed 'Underwear Bomber' Farouk". Vanguard News. January 5, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
^"Underwear bomber Abdulmutallab sentenced to life". BBC News. February 16, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
^Cite error: The named reference atc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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