The mysterious disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 on March 8 this year is still a mystery to the special services of a dozen countries involved in the search. Meanwhile, history knows many cases when airplanes disappeared from radar screens and the further development of events is comparable only to the plot of a science fiction film.
In today's selection we offer Top 5 most mysterious air crashes in history. Some of them years later formed the basis of film scripts and autobiographies.
5. The disappearance of Amelia Earhart
Amelia was the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic. In 1973, Earhart was preparing to take a trip around the world in a light twin-engine Lockheed Electra aircraft. However, in the center of the Pacific Ocean, the car went missing. There were many versions of the disappearance of Amelia - from the abduction by aliens to the capture of the Japanese military. However, the mystery of Earhart’s catastrophe remained unsolved.
4. The disappearance of American bombers
This mysterious story happened in 1945 in the infamous Bermuda Triangle. US Navy bombers disappeared from radar in a calm sea and clear weather. There were rumors in the press that in the negotiations of the pilots it was said that the ocean looked extremely unusual. Not a single wreckage from 5 missing aircraft was found.
3. The capture of the liner DB Cooper
In November 1971, a passenger by the name of Cooper grabbed a liner bound for Portland. The hijacker demanded $ 200 thousand and several parachutes. Cooper allowed the plane to land in Seattle for refueling, where money and parachutes were transferred on board. A few minutes after take-off, the hijacker opened the tailgate and silently jumped out of the plane. The FBI was unable to find either himself or a bag of money. After 5 years, dirty banknotes worth $ 6 thousand were found on the banks of the Columbia River with serial numbers that coincided with those issued to Cooper.
2. The crash of flight number 800
In 1996, the Trans World Airlines liner operated a flight along the popular New York-Rome route. A few minutes after takeoff, the plane exploded in the air, killing 230 people. Among the versions, the seizure by terrorists was discussed, but no one claimed responsibility for the disaster. According to another version, the plane was accidentally shot down by a missile from a ship of the US Navy. However, according to the official version, the cause of the accident was called a short circuit.
1. The disaster in Uruguay
In 1972, a plane carrying 45 people suddenly disappeared from radar during a flight over the Andes. For 72 days, the fate of the ship remained unclear. However, then 16 surviving passengers were found who managed to survive on the icy highlands, only eating the bodies of the dead. History formed the basis of the film "Alive."
