Investigation Summary
Approximately 13 minutes after takeoff, while the aircraft was climbing through 29,000 feet, five men and two women initiated a hijacking attempt using handguns. Onboard sky marshals immediately engaged the hijackers in a gunfight, killing six of them. In the chaos, one hijacker activated a hand grenade. A passenger, attempting to mitigate the blast, lobbed or rolled the grenade toward the rear of the cabin. The grenade detonated approximately 6 inches off the aircraft's centerline, blowing a hole in the cabin floor. The explosion severed or damaged critical systems, including the rudder controls, horizontal stabilizer cables, and throttle linkages for two engines. Despite the loss of control surface effectiveness and engine response, the flight crew managed to maintain control and execute an emergency landing back at Haile Selassie I International Airport. The seventh hijacker later died in the hospital.
Final Conclusions
The incident was concluded as a failed hijacking attempt by the Eritrean Liberation Front. The survival of the aircraft is attributed to the quick reaction of the security guards and the exceptional airmanship of the crew in landing a severely damaged airframe. All seven hijackers were killed; no passengers or crew members were among the fatalities, though several were injured.
Video Analysis
What Really Happened Inside Flight 708 — On December 8, 1972, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 708 became the stage for one of the most intense and forgotten hijackings in aviation history.
If playback is blocked, the owner has disabled embedding — use the link above.
Systems & Failure Modes
Flight Controls
The grenade blast severed or damaged the cables for the rudder and the horizontal stabilizer.
Engine Throttles
Mechanical linkages for the throttles of two engines were damaged by the explosion, affecting power management.
Fuselage Structure
The detonation blew a hole in the cabin floor and damaged the rear section of the airframe.
Interesting Facts
- 01The hijackers were members of the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF).
- 02The grenade explosion occurred only 6 inches off the aircraft's centerline.
- 03The blast damaged the throttle controls for two of the four engines.
- 04All 96 passengers and crew members survived the incident, although at least one passenger was injured by the hijackers.
- 05Seven hijackers were killed (six during the flight and one later in the hospital).
- 06The aircraft sustained substantial damage but was later repaired and returned to service.
Location
APPROXIMATE AREA ONLY · Coordinates are the reference point of the airport named in the location, not the point of impact. No map is shown, because a marker here would imply a precision the record does not have.
Reported location: Near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia