By Max Kingsley-Jones and Rob Coppinger in London
Data gathered by Flight International reveals that over the past 25 years 12 aircraft have either been destroyed or damaged by bomb explosions in the cabin, resulting in the deaths of over 220 people (see table below).
The worst event was in 1987, when a bomb hidden in the cabin of Korean Air 707 resulted in the loss of the aircraft and 115 deaths.
Almost 1,000 more people have been killed in events caused by the explosion of bombs in cargo holds, with the loss of six airliners. The most notable of these were the destruction of an Air India Boeing 747 over the Atlantic in 1985 in which 329 people died and in 1988 when a Pan Am 747 was brought down over Lockerbie, killing all 259 on board.
Experts say any explosion on board an aircraft will damage the fuselage, and if it is sufficiently large and the aircraft is at altitude then the fuselage will be unable to withstand the ensuing rapid depressurisation.
"Aircraft are required to withstand a rapid decompression caused by a hole about 1.85m2 (20ft2) in size," says Jonathan Howes, who is technical director of consultants Aerodac and previously a structures specialist at the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
He adds, however, that a bomb's explosive force would be absorbed by the aircraft floor, seats and people in the cabin area immediately around the detonation.
Howes says that the presence of humans reduces the force exerted on the aircraft structure. "Even if the explosion does not create a large hole, damage to floors and other structures in an aircraft can have a significant impact on its flight-control systems," he adds.
Source: Flight International
