Neerja Bhanot was an Indian flight purser. On 5 September 1986, she saved a large number of passengers onboard Pan Am Flight 73, which had been hijacked by four Palestinian terrorists from the Abu Nidal Organization after it made a stopover at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan. Around 17 hours into the standoff, after she opened an emergency exit door and began helping passengers escape from the plane, Neerja was shot and killed by the hijackers. Shortly afterward, Pakistan's Special Service Group stormed the aircraft and captured all of the hijackers.
Neerja Bhanot was born on 7 September 1963 in Chandigarh, India into a Punjabi Hindu Brahmin family of the Bhanot clan. She was the daughter of Harish Bhanot, a Bombay-based journalist, and Rama Bhanot. She had two brothers, Akhil and Aneesh Bhanot. She received her early schooling at Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School in Chandigarh. When the family moved to Bombay, she continued her studies at Bombay Scottish School and then graduated from St. Xavier's College, Bombay. It was in Bombay where she was first spotted for a modeling assignment which began her modeling career. She was a huge fan of actor Rajesh Khanna and used to refer to quotes from his films throughout her life.
Her father, Harish Bhanot, worked as a journalist with the Hindustan Times for more than 30 years and died on New Year's Day in 2008 in Chandigarh at the age of 86. Her mother died on 5 December 2015 at the age of 86. Bhanot applied for a flight attendant job with Pan Am, when in 1985 it decided to have an all Indian cabin crew for its Frankfurt to India routes. Upon selection, she went to Miami, Florida for training as a flight attendant, but returned as a purser.
| Date of Birth | 7th September 1963 |
|---|---|
| Age | 61 Years |
| Zodiac Sign | Virgo |
| Country | Others |
| Language | English |
