The Tragedy of Flight 103: The Inside Story (TV 1990)

Examination of the events that led to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.

Director:

Leslie Woodhead

Writer:

Michael Eaton

Stars:

Ned Beatty, Peter Boyle, Harry Ditson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ned Beatty	...	Edward C. Acker
Peter Boyle	...	Fred Ford
Harry Ditson	...	Martin Shugrue
Vincent Gardenia	...	Harry Pizer
Timothy West	...	Col. Wilfred Wood
Michael Wincott	...	Ulrich Weber
Sean Pertwee	...	Oliver Koch
Richard Howard	...	Berndt Meyer
Michael Cronin	...	Martin Hübner
Stephen Hoye	...	Tommy Dome
Emma Martin	...	Beate Franzki
Peter Darling	...	Profile Screener 1
Sandra Butterworth	...	Profile Screener 2
Rivca Rubin	...	Alert Employee
Martyn Read	...	X Ray Scanner

Storyline

On December 21, 1988, Pan American Airways flight 103, a Boeing 747 carrying 259 people on a London-New York flight, was brought down by a bomb over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing all on board, plus 11 people on the ground. This film goes back several years before the bombing, starting with Pan Am's botched "Alert" safety program to boost public confidence. Then, the accidental downing of an Iranian airliner by a US Navy warship pushed an extremist group to prepare a counter-attack, with a bomb disguised as a radio cassette player... while "Alert" is not heeding to the numerous safety concerns.

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Plot Keywords:

scotland | terrorist | terrorist plot | airplane shot down | reenactment | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 December 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Why Lockerbie?

Filming Locations:

Malta

Company Credits

Production Co:

Granada Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min 86 min (Ontario)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Goofs

Pan Am Flight 103 taking-off from Heathrow shows a Boeing 747SP, recognizable by its very short fuselage, when all the other scenes accurately show a Boeing 747-100.

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Quotes

Narrator: [following a bomb threat involving a Finnish woman] Other than screening Finnish passengers, Pan Am's procedures at Frankfurt Airport remained unchanged. There was no briefing of security personnel to update them on threat information.

User Reviews

Not likely as an in flight movie

This a brutally honest, compellingly accurate, brilliantly crafted film. It's not exactly a docudrama. But it examines the facts behind the Lockerbee bombing in a dramatic fashion without preaching. And who among us, whether in the airline business, cigarettes, cat food or something else has not been trapped in the pressures of the sort of corporate culture that is so well documented here. Do you resign in conscience or do you reluctantly do what you're told in order to save your job. There are no real bad guys here; just a lot of disillusioned ones. Even the terrorists have their redeeming qualities. A whole lot of people got trapped in a situation that inevitably took on a life (and death) of its own. I am astounded this superb film has had such limited exposure. But don't expect to see it as in flight entertainment.