After A Plane Gets Taken Over, One Flight Attendant Sacrifices Herself To Save Hundreds
It’s September 5, 1986, and tensions are rising on board the grounded Pan Am Flight 73. A group of terrorists has hijacked the aircraft, and their patience is wearing thin. All of the flight attendants are trying their best to keep a lid on the chaos, but one person in particular is forced to make a devastating split-second decision. Her name was Neerja Bhanot.
Bhanot’s early years
Now, before Bhanot became a flight attendant for Pan Am, she had a pretty eventful life. Following her birth in September 1963, the youngster grew up in Chandigarh, India, with her family. But as she entered her teenage years, she packed her bags and opted for a change of scenery.
College enrollment
Yes, Bhanot made a new home in Mumbai, India, during that spell. And as she continued to get older, the teenager also went on to earn a spot at St. Xavier’s College. Exciting times, right? Mind you, things then took an interesting turn after someone spotted her walking around the school grounds.
Modeling work
Who was it? Well, the person in question was a camera operator, and they recognized some potential in Bhanot. So after that chance encounter, she tried her hand in the world of modeling. And she had some success, as the talented Mumbai resident worked with brands such as Vaporex across that period.
The arranged marriage...and divorce
When it came to her home life, though, Bhanot’s path seemed to be set in stone. You see, she consented to a preplanned marriage, which eventually took place in March 1985. Yet their union didn’t last too long. Within a couple of months, she realized that her new husband had a cruel streak, so she dumped him.
