Korean Air Flight 858
A Korean Air Boeing 707 similar to the one that was destroyed in the Korean Air Flight 858 bombing.
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| Bombing summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | 29 November 1987 |
| Summary | Bombing, state terrorism |
| Site | The Andaman Sea 14°33′N 97°23′E / 14.55°N 97.38°ECoordinates: 14°33′N 97°23′E / 14.55°N 97.38°E |
| Passengers | 104 |
| Crew | 11 |
| Fatalities | 115 (all) |
| Survivors | 0 |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 707-3B5C |
| Operator | Korean Air |
| Registration | HL7406 |
| Flight origin | Saddam International Airport (Now Baghdad International Airport), Baghdad, Iraq |
| 1st stopover | Abu Dhabi International Airport, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
| 2nd stopover | Don Mueang International Airport, Bangkok, Thailand |
| Destination |
Gimpo International Airport, Gangseo-gu, Seoul, South Korea |
Korean Air Flight 858 was a scheduled international passenger flight between Baghdad, Iraq and Seoul, South Korea. On 29 November 1987, the aircraft flying that route exploded in mid-air upon the detonation of a bomb planted inside an overhead storage bin in the airplane's passenger cabin by North Korean agents.
The two agents, acting upon orders from the North Korean government, planted the device in an overhead storage bin before disembarking from the aircraft during the first stop-over in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. While the aircraft was flying over the Andaman Sea to its second stop-over in Bangkok, Thailand, the bomb detonated and destroyed the Korean Air Boeing 707-3B5C. Everyone on board the aircraft, 104 passengers and 11 crew members, most of whom were South Koreans, were killed. The attack occurred 34 years after the Korean Armistice Agreement that ended the hostilities of the Korean War on 27 July 1953.
The two bombers were traced to Bahrain, where they both took ampules of cyanide hidden in cigarettes when they realized they were about to be taken into custody. The male of the pair died, but the female, Kim Hyon-hui, survived and later confessed to the bombing. She was sentenced to death after being put on trial for the attack, but was later pardoned by the President of South Korea, Roh Tae-woo, because it was deemed that she had been brainwashed in North Korea. Kim's testimony implicated Kim Jong-il, who at that time was the future leader of North Korea, as the person ultimately responsible for the incident. The United States Department of State specifically refers to the bombing of KAL 858 as a "terrorist act" and, until 2008, listed North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism.
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