Countdown To Disaster
Sunday, October 4th, 1992
6.25 p.m. El Al 747
cargo jet takes off from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport for Tel Aviv.
6.27 p.m. Pilot Yitzhak Fuchs, tells Air Traffic Control:
"Mayday, Mayday, we have an emergency."
6.30 p.m. Crew dumps some petrol in anticipation of crash.
6.35 p.m. Pilot says: "Going down, going down."
6.36 p.m. Plane crashes into Groeneveen and Kruitberg
buildings in Bijmermeer flats complex.
October 5th 1992
Locals report having seen mysterious
men in white suits removing wreckage from the crash site. El Al
describes cargo as "a normal load".
1992
Cockpit voice recorder is found by firefighters
but goes missing from evidence bin. More than 12 hours of videotape
of rescue operation is erased.
1993, 1994
Residents of Bijlmermeer and emergency
workers on duty on the night of the crash begin to complain of
strange physical and psychological illnesses. It emerges that the
plane, like many older Boeing models, used depleted uranium as
ballast.
1995, 1996
Number of those with health problems grows.
February 1997
Israeli parliament demands that El Al
replace the depleted uranium in its planes. El Al refuses, saying
this is a matter for the manufacturers, Boeing.
November 1997
Research group says it can show presence
of uranium in the sample faeces of 15 people.
1998
Dutch MP Rob van Gijzel continues to press for an
official inquiry into crash.
April 1998
Israel dismisses allegations plane was
carrying dangerous goods.
October 1998
Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad reports
that the plane was carrying large quantities of three main
ingredients for deadly sarin nerve gas. Official inquiry begins
preparatory work.
January 1999
First witnesses due to give testimony at
official inquiry.
The Irish Times. 1/9/98 |
