Iraqi Airways - Incidents and Accidents

Incidents and Accidents

Iraqi Airways is one of the oldest and safest airlines in the Middle East, the last fatal incident occurred on 25 December 1986. The airline has had the following incidents, accidents and hijackings with a fatality count of around 70 since they began operations in 1945 and ceased in 2010;

• On 10 October 1955, a Vickers 644 Viking 1B overran the runway at Baghdad and crashed into a ditch where it caught fire. All nineteen passengers and crew survived, but the aircraft was written off.
• On 19 March 1965, a Vickers 773 Viscount crashed into a row of lamp posts at Cairo after a flight from Baghdad. All passengers and crew survived, but the aircraft was written off.
• On 17 April 1973, a Vickers 735 Viscount performed a belly landing at Mosul International Airport after fuel exhaustion. All thirty three passengers and crew survived, but the aircraft was written off.
• On 1 March 1975, a Boeing 737-200 flying from Mosul to Baghdad was hijacked by three hijackers. There was one death on board.
• On 23 September 1980, a Ilyushin 76 cargo aircraft flying from Paris to Baghdad crashed whilst on approach to Saddam International Airport. It is believed the aircraft was shot down by Iranian fighter jets. It as also believed all crew members died.
• On 24 September 1980, an Antonov 24TV was destroyed by heavy fire whilst on the ground Kirkuk Airport. There were reports of heavy fire in the area during 24 September.
• On 22 April 1982, an Antonov 24B crashed whilst on approach to an Iraqi airfield. The left wing hit the ground causing the plane to crash. It is believed all crew members died.
• On 28 August 1982, an Antonov 24TV undercarriage collapsed on take-off from Nasiriyah Airport. All onboard survived but the aircraft was written off.
• On 16 September 1984, Iraqi Airways Flight 123, a Boeing 737-270C flying from Larnaca to Baghdad was hijacked by three hijackers. The three hijackers were killed whilst the rest of the passengers and crew survived.
• On 25 December 1986, Iraqi Airways Flight 163, a Boeing 737-270C flying from Baghdad to Amman experienced a hijack attempt whilst flying over Saudi Arabia. Four hijackers tried to enter the cockpit whilst flying at FL260. Two explosions went off resulting in a crash near Arar, Saudi Arabia killing sixty three of the one hundred and six on board.
• During the Gulf War, two Iraqi Airways Tupolev Tu-124V were destroyed by U.S. bombs.