Air India Flight 182

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**Air India Flight 182**
Summary
Date	June 23, 1985
Type	Mid-air bomb explosion
Site	Atlantic Ocean below Ireland
Fatalities	329
Injuries	0
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 747-237B
Operator	Air India
Passengers	307
Crew	22
Survivors	0

Air India Flight 182 was a Boeing 747 that exploded on June 23, 1985 while at an altitude of 31,000 feet (9500 m) above the Atlantic Ocean, south of Ireland; all 329 on board were killed, of whom 82 were children and 280 were Canadian citizens.

Up until September 11, 2001, the Air India bombing was the single deadliest terrorist attack involving aircraft. It is also the largest mass murder in Canadian history. It occurred within an hour of the Narita Airport Bombing.

The Air India B747-237B “Emperor Kanishka” (registered VT-EFO) flew on a Montréal-Mirabel International Airport, – London Heathrow Airport – Palam International Airport, Delhi – Sahar International Airport, Bombay route.

The BC government's trial of those accused of the bombing, Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri, is known as the Air India Trial. The investigation and prosecution took almost twenty years and was the costliest in Canadian history at nearly CAD $130 million. On March 16, 2005, the accused were found not guilty by Justice Ian Josephson in British Columbia and were released. The only person convicted of involvement in the bombing was Inderjit Singh Reyat. On February 10, 2003 Reyat pled guilty to manslaughter in constructing the bomb used on Flight 182 and received a five-year sentence.

The length and cost of the trial, and subsequent verdict have been a source of great controversy in Canada.

1 Incident timeline
- 1.1 The Air India 182 bomb
2 The suspects
3 Key Timelines
4 Recent events
5 What did the Canadian government know?
6 See also
7 External links

[edit] Incident timeline

On June 20, 1985, at 0100 GMT, a man calling himself Mr. Singh made reservations for two flights on June 22: one for "Jaswand Singh" to fly from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Montreal on Canadian Pacific Air Lines (CP) 086, and one for "Mohinderbel Singh" to fly from Vancouver to Tokyo on CP 003, and to there connect with Air India flight 301 to Bangkok.

At 0220 GMT on the same day, another call was made, changing the reservation in the name of "Jaswand Singh" from CP 086 to CP 060 (flying from Vancouver to Toronto, Ontario). The caller also requested to be wait-listed on Air India 181 from Toronto to Montreal and AI 182 from Montreal to Delhi.

At 1910 GMT, a man paid for the two tickets with $3,005 in cash at a CP ticket office in Vancouver. The names on the reservations were changed; "Jaswand Singh" became "M. Singh" and "Mohinderbel Singh" became "L. Singh.".

On June 22, 1985, at 1330 GMT, a man calling himself Manjit Singh called to confirm his reservations on Air India flight 181/182. He was told he was still wait-listed, and was offered alternate arrangements, which he declined.

[edit] The Air India 182 bomb

At 15:50 GMT on June 22, "Mr. Singh" checked in at Vancouver Airport for CP Air Flight 60 to Toronto. He was assigned seat 10B. Singh requested that his suitcase, a dark brown, hard-sided Samsonite suitcase, be transferred to Flight 181 and then 182. CP Agent Jeanne Bakermans initially refused his request to inter-line the baggage, since his seat from Toronto to Montreal and Montreal to Delhi was unconfirmed, but later relented [1].

At 16:18 GMT, the CP Air flight to Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Toronto departed without Mr. Singh.

At 20:22 GMT, CP Air Flight 60 arrived in Toronto twelve minutes late. Some of the passengers and baggage, including the bag Mr. Singh checked in, were transferred to the Air India flight. Other passengers and baggage from Air Canada Flight 136, which also came from Vancouver, were handled as well.

At 00:15 GMT (now June 23), Flight 181 departed Toronto for Montreal-Mirabel 1 hour and 40 minutes late. The aircraft was late as a "5th pod,” a spare engine, was installed below the left wing. The defective engine was being flown to India for repairs. It arrived at Mirabel at 01:00 GMT. In Montreal, the Air India flight became Flight 182.

At 07:15 GMT, Air India Flight 182, which had departed Mirabel bound for London, disappeared. Air traffic controllers at the Shanwick Oceanic Control Center near Shannon International Airport, in Shannon, Ireland heard a crackling sound on the radio before the plane vanished. The plane was due to arrive at 08:15 GMT.

A Commemorative plaque, presented to the citizens of Bantry, Ireland by the Canadian Government for their kindness and compassion to the victims of Air India Flight 182.

A bomb located in the forward cargo hold had exploded while the plane was in mid-flight at 31,000 ft. The bomb caused rapid decompression, and consequent in-flight breakup. The wreckage settled in 2,000 m deep water off the south-west Irish coast 180 miles (290 km) offshore of County Cork.

The bombing killed 22 flight crew and 307 passengers, including 82 minors and numerous Sikhs. Post-accident medical reports graphically illustrated the horror inflicted by this act on the passengers and crew. Of the 329 persons on board, only 131 bodies were recovered. 198 bodies were lost forever to the depths of the Atlantic Ocean. The bodies recovered included 30 children. Eight bodies exhibited "flail pattern" injuries, indicating that those 8 victims exited the aircraft in the air prior to it hitting the water. This, in turn, was a sign that the airplane had broken up in mid-air rather than crashing into the water intact. 26 bodies showed signs of hypoxia (lack of oxygen), including 12 children. 25 bodies, mostly of victims who were seated near windows, showed signs of explosive "decompression", including 7 children. 23 bodies had signs of "injuries from a vertical force". 21 passengers were found with little or no clothing.

One official quoted in the report stated, "All victims have been stated in the PM reports to have died of multiple injuries. However two of the dead, one infant and one child, are reported to have died of Asphyxia. There is no doubt about the asphyxial death of the infant. In the case of the other child (Body No. 93) there could be doubt because the findings could also be caused due to the child undergoing tumbling or spinning with the anchor point at the ankles. Three other victims undoubtedly died of drowning." [2]

But for the one hour and forty minute delay in leaving Toronto, Air India 182 would have been at London's Heathrow airport at the time of the explosion; with an outcome similar to that of the Narita bomb which had exploded fifty five minutes earlier.

[edit] The suspects

The main suspects in the bombing were the members of a Sikh separtists group called the Babbar Khalsa. The Babbar Khalsa was devoted to creating a Sikh state called Khalistan in the Punjab.

On November 6, 1985 the RCMP raided the homes of the suspected Sikh terrorists, Talwinder Singh Parmar, Inderjit Singh Reyat. Surjan Singh Gill, Hardial Singh Johal, and Manmohan Singh.

Talwinder Singh Parmar was a naturalized Canadian citizen living in British Columbia and was wanted for extradition to India for his role in activities in the Punjab including the murder of two Police officers. At this time, the Indian police and Khalistan supporters were engaged in a bloody war in which many innocent people were caught by excesses on both sides. On March 5, 1985, three months before the bombing, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) had obtained permission to tape Parmar’s phone on the basis that he was the leader of the terrorist organization, the Babbar Khalsa [3].

Inderjit Singh Reyat was living in Duncan, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, and working as an auto mechanic and electrician.

Surjan Singh Gill was living in Vancouver as the self-proclaimed consul-general of Khalistan. He later fled Canada and is believed to be in hiding in London, England.

Ripudaman Singh Malik is a Vancouver businessman who helped found a credit union and several Khalsa Schools.

Ajaib Singh Bagri was a mill worker living in Kamloops, British Columbia. Part of the evidence in the trial was a tape of Bagri giving a speech to Sikhs at Madison Square Garden on July 1984. Excerpts from the speech mentioned in the verdict include the need to murder Hindus and makes the request to murder the families of those in the Sikh community who would "betray us".

"They say Hindus are our brothers. Oh, I say denounce such Sikhism that calls Hindus our brothers. . . If any speaker from this stage ever mentions Hindus as our brothers he will be denounced as a traitor of the Sikh nation. . . They say Hindus are our brothers, many have said that, but I give you my most solemn assurance until we kill 50,000 Hindus, we will not rest!. . . Now I make a request: if anybody tries to betray us now, if anybody tries to get our nation annihilated, all of his family and children will be crushed in crushers and reduced to pulp."

Hardial Singh Johal and Manmohan Singh were both followers of Parmar and active in the Sikh temples where he preached. On November 15, 2002 Hardial Singh Johal, died of natural causes at 55. He had allegedly stored the suitcases with bombs in the basement of a Vancouver school but was never charged in the case.

Daljit Sandhu is later named by a Crown witness as the man who picked up the tickets for the bombing. During the trial the Crown played a video from January, 1989, in which Daljit Sandhu congratulated the families of Indira Gandhi’s assassins and stated that “she deserved that and she invited that and that’s why she got it”. Mr. Sandhu was cleared by Judge Josephson in his March 16 judgement.

[edit] Key Timelines

The bombing of Air India Flight 182 and the Narita airport launched several investigations, inquiries and trials. The trial of Malik and Bagri is known as the Air India Trial; Event relating to the incident are listed below in chronological order.

June 1, 1984 – Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi orders storming of the Golden Temple complex, in Amritsar, Punjab, India in order to remove armed militants that had occupied the temple for months. The attack is called Operation Blue Star and is reported to have killed around 800 militants and 200 Indian government troops. The attack on the temple included damage to the complex as well as the destruction of sacred artifacts contained inside.

October 31, 1984 – Two of Indira Gandhi's Sikh bodyguards, Beant Singh and Satwant Singh assassinate the Prime Minister in the garden of her home.

November 3, 1984 – Following Gandhi's murder, Anti Sikh Riots escalate through northern India over next two weeks. Religious mobs attack Sikh businesses, temples, and government buildings. The ensuing violence claims the lives of around 3,000, mostly Sikh, victims. Over 35,000 Sikhs flee to refugee camps that are set up north of Delhi. Many others are left homeless. Commissions set up after the incicident have found evidence that members of the Indian government were involved in inciting the riots.

June 23, 1985 – Flight 182 explodes in mid-flight killing all 329 aboard. Explosion in Narita kills 2.

November 8, 1985 – The RCMP charge Talwinder Singh Parmar and Inderjit Singh Reyat with weapons, explosives and conspiracy offences after a raid on their homes. Reyat is convicted of the weapons offence and receives a fine of two thousand dollars. Due to lack of evidence the charges against Parmar are dropped and no link to Air India is established.

January 22, 1986 – The Canadian Aviation Safety Board determines that a bomb was responsible for bringing down Air India 182.

February 4, 1986 – The Indian Government's Kirpal Commission of Inquiry reaches the same conclusion as the Canadian Aviation Safety Board.

February 1988 – Inderjit Singh Reyat is arrested by British police in Coventry, England.

December 8, 1989 – Following a lengthy court battle the British government agrees to extradite Reyat to Canada.

May 10, 1991 – Inderjit Singh Reyat receives a ten year sentence after being convicted of two counts of manslaughter and four explosives charges relating to the Narita Airport bombing.

October 15, 1992 – Talwinder Singh Parmar is killed by Indian Police during a gun battle in Bombay.

October 27, 2000 – Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri are arrested by the RCMP. They are charged with 329 counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of the people on board Air India Flight 182, the conspiracy to murder, the attempted murder of passengers and crew on the Canadian Pacific flight at Japan's New Tokyo International Airport (now Narita International Airport), and charged with two counts of murder of the baggage handlers at New Tokyo International Airport.

June 4, 2001 – The British government gives Canada permission to charge Inderjit Singh Reyat in connection with the bombings.

June 6, 2001 – Inderjit Singh Reyat is arrested by the RCMP facing charges of murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy in the Air India bombing.

February 10, 2003 – Reyat pleads guilty to one count of manslaughter and a charge of aiding in the construction of a bomb. He was sentenced to five years in jail. At the time he was expected to provide testimony in the trial of Malik and Bagri but later claimed he couldn't remember.

April 2003 – The trial of Malik and Bagri begins after being delayed by pre-trial motions and problems with defense counsel.

May 18, 2004 – The crown rests its case in the trial of Malik and Bagri after calling 80 witnesses.

May 31, 2004 – Malik and Bagri's defense begins.

October 19, 2004 – Closing arguments begin.

December 4, 2004 – The judge presiding over the Air India Trial, Justice Ian Josephson says the verdict will be delivered on March 16, 2005.

March 16, 2005 – Justice Ian Josephson delivers the verdict for Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri: Not guilty on all counts.

I began by describing the horrific nature of these cruel acts of terrorism, acts which cry out for justice. Justice is not achieved, however, if persons are convicted on anything less than the requisite standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Despite what appear to have been the best and most earnest of efforts by the police and the Crown, the evidence has fallen markedly short of that standard. [4]

January 6, 2006 – Inderjit Singh Reyat, the only man convicted in the 1985 Air India bombing will be up for a parole hearing in March. Instead Mr. Reyat was charged with perjury on his testimony on the Air India Trial. He was denied parole and brought back to British Columbia to face the new charges. He has indicated he will plead not guilty.[5]

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[edit] Recent events

Twenty years after the downing of Air India Flight 182, families gathered in Ahakista, Ireland to grieve. Canada's former Prime Minister Paul Martin declared the anniversary a national day of mourning. During the anniversary observances, he said that the bombing was a Canadian problem, not a foreign problem, saying: "Make no mistake: The flight may have been Air India's, it may have taken place off the coast of Ireland, but this is a Canadian tragedy." [6] He also ordered that every June 23, flags across Canada be flown at half-staff to mark the anniversary of the Air India bombing. Many families say they are still searching for answers and justice, and demand a public inquiry.

Former Ontario premier Bob Rae was selected to determine if a public inquiry is needed and was asked to determine whether or not the response by Canadian agencies was sufficiently co-ordinated, and if not, to find out if those problems had been fixed.

Ripudaman Singh Malik has demanded compensation from Canadian government for his arrest for wrongful persecution in a letter he submitted to the Attorney General of British Columbia. Malik owes the government $6.4 million and Bagri owes $9.7 million in legal fees.

In February Inderjit Singh Reyat was charged with perjury with regards to his testimony in the trial. The indictment was filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia and lists 27 instances where he allegedly misled the court during his testimony. Reyat had pleaded guilty to constructing the bomb but denied under oath that he knew anything about the conspiracy.

In the verdict Justice Ian Josephson said "I find him to be an unmitigated liar under oath,"

"Even the most sympathetic of listeners could only conclude, as do I, that his evidence was patently and pathetically fabricated in an attempt to minimize his involvement in his crime to an extreme degree, while refusing to reveal relevant information he clearly possesses."

Reyat has a hearing with the National Parole Board on March 3rd. If found guilty of perjury he could sentenced with up to 14 years in prison.

September 25, 2006, saw the opening of the Royal Commission into the Air India bombing and subsequent investigation, beginning with a testimony from a man who lost his wife in the crash.

[edit] What did the Canadian government know?

The Canadian government had been warned by the Indian government about the possibility of terrorist bombs aboard Air India flights in Canada. And over two weeks before the crash CSIS reported to the RCMP that the potential threat to Air India as well as Indian missions in Canada, was high [7].

[edit] Destroyed evidence

In his verdict Justice Ian Josephson cited "unacceptable negligence" by CSIS when hundreds of wiretaps of the suspects were destroyed. Of the 210 wiretaps that were recorded during the months before and after the bombing, 156 were erased. These tapes continued to be erased even after the terrorists had become the primary suspects in the bombing.

CSIS claims the wiretaps contained no relevant information but a memo from the RCMP states that "There is a strong likelihood that had CSIS retained the tapes between March and August 1985, that a successful prosecution of at least some of principals in both bombings could have been undertaken." [8]

On June 4, 1985, CSIS agents Larry Lowe and Lynn McAdams trailed Talwinder Singh Parmar and Inderjit Singh Reyat to Vancouver Island. The agents reported to the RCMP that they had heard a noise like a "loud gunshot" in the woods. Later that month Flight 182 was bombed. After the bombing the RCMP went to the site and found remains of an electrical blasting cap. [9]

The suspects in the bombing were apparently aware that they were under surveillance, because they used pay phones and talked in code. Translator's notes of the wiretaps records this exchange between Talwinder Parmar and a follower named Hardial Singh Johal on the same day the tickets were purchased on June 20, 1985. [10]
Parmar: Did he write the story?
Johal: No he didn't.
Parmar: Do that work first.

After this call a man called the CP Air and booked the tickets and left Johal's number. Shortly afterwards, Johal called Parmar and asked him if he "can come over and read the story he asked for". Parmar said he would be there shortly.

This conversation appears to be an order from Parmar to book the tickets used to bomb the planes. Because the original wiretaps were erased by CSIS they were inadmissible as evidence in court.

[edit] Murdered witness

Tara Singh Hayer, the publisher of the Indo-Canadian Times and a member of the Order of British Columbia, had provided an affidavit to the RCMP in 1995 claiming that he was present during a conversation in which Bagri admitted his involvement in the bombings. While at the London offices of fellow Sikh newspaper publisher Tarsem Singh Purewal, Hayer claims he overheard a meeting between Purewal and Bagri. In that meeting Hayer claims that Bagri stated that "if everything had gone as planned the plane would have blown up at Heathrow airport with no passengers on it. But because the plane was a half hour to three quarters of an hour late, it blew up over the ocean." On November 18, 1998, Hayer was shot to death while under police protection in Surrey, British Columbia. Hayer had previously survived an earlier attempt made on his life in 1988 but was paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair. Because of his assassination the affidavit was inadmissible in court. [11]

[edit] CSIS connection

During an interview with Bagri on October 28, 2000, RCMP agents describe Surjan Singh Gill as an agent for CSIS saying the reason that he resigned from the Babbar Khalsa was because his CSIS handlers told him to pull out. [12]

After the subsequent failure of CSIS to stop the bombing of Flight 182, the head of CSIS was replaced by Reid Morden. In an interview to the CBC's news program The National, Morden claims that CSIS "dropped the ball" in its handling of the case. A Security Intelligence Review Committee cleared CSIS of any wrongdoing. However, that report remains secret to this day. The Canadian government continues to insist that there was no mole involved.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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