12-Year-Old Bahia Bakari Survives Yemenia Plane Crash After 13 Hours in Indian Ocean
· World · Times of India, Moneycontrol
In 2009, 12-year-old Bahia Bakari was the sole survivor when Yemenia Airways Flight IY626 crashed into the Indian Ocean near the Comoros Islands, killing 152 of the 153 people aboard. She clung to wreckage for approximately 13 hours in the dark waters while rescuers searched, despite having barely any swimming ability. The aircraft, an Airbus A310-324 carrying 142 passengers and 11 crew from Paris via Sana'a and Marseille, lost radio contact with controllers 18 km from Moroni airport during a night approach in poor weather. Her father Kassim Bakari recounted her harrowing account to French radio, stating she grabbed onto something after the plane fell and could not see anyone in the water.
Why it matters
Bahia Bakari's survival against extreme odds highlights the life-saving role of maritime rescue operations and underscores the vulnerability of child passengers in aviation incidents, with implications for aviation safety protocols and family trauma recovery.
Read the original report — Times of India
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