No one ever claimed responsibility for the bombing of Cyprus Airways Flight 284.

Exactly 55 years ago today, Cyprus Airways Flight 284 from Athens-Ellinikon International Airport (ATH) to Nicosia International Airport (NIC) blew up in midair, killing all 66 passengers and crew.

The aircraft involved in the bombing was a six-year-old de Havilland DH-106 Comet 4 with the registration G-ARCO. As a part-owner of Cyprus Airways, British European Airways (BEA) operated all of Cyprus Airways' jet flights.

On Wednesday, October 11, 1967, a British European Airways (BEA) de Havilland DH-106 Comet 4, operating on behalf of Cyprus Airways, took off from London Heathrow Airport for Athens, arriving at 03:00. Having landed safely on what was now October 12th, Cyprus Airways Flight 284 took off at 04:30 for the short 1 hr 35 min flight to Nicosia. Onboard the aircraft were seven crew members and 59 passengers.

Cleared to cruise at 29,000 feet, Athens Air Traffic Control (ATC) transferred its monitoring of the flight to its counterpart in Cyprus around 45 minutes into the flight. While acknowledging that Cyprus ATC was now the controller, the crew radioed Nicosia, but when the Cypriots radioed back, there was no reply from the aircraft crew.

The reason for the silence was that, while flying over the Mediterranean Sea 100 miles southeast of the Greek island of Rhodes, a bomb had exploded in the cabin. The plane blew apart in midair, and the wreckage fell into the sea 22 miles south of the Turkish coastal town of Demre.

The following day after the explosion, 51 bodies were recovered from the sea and, contrary to reports at the time, none were wearing life jackets. Judging by the passenger's wristwatches that had stopped working, the incident happened at 05:26. Investigators concluded that the aircraft had suffered a significant incident around eight minutes after contacting Nicosia ATC. The plane's wreckage was found spread over approximately 35 square miles at a depth of between nine and ten thousand feet.

Given the Comet's past airframe failures and the plane's grounding, a structural issue was the first thing investigators looked at. After a structural failure was discounted, the initial assumption was that the plane was involved in a midair collision with a Greek military aircraft. This was debunked after a passenger seat cushion found floating on the sea revealed evidence of a military-grade plastic explosive.

The seat cushion and other evidence recovered from the scene were sent to laboratories for examination. Forensic experts at the United Kingdom's Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment were given the job of determining what type of explosive was used to down the aircraft, and from where it might have come.

No group ever claimed responsibility for the bombing, but in 1967, tensions were high in Cyprus after the commander of the Cypriot National Guard, General George Grivas, deployed a battalion of troops in Kofinou to crack down on Turkish militants. The UK press ran stories suggesting that General Grivas was supposed to be on the flight and was the target of the bomb.

Over the following few years, tensions between Greek and Turkish Cypriots remained high, leading to the 1974 invasion by Turkey. Today, Turkish troops still occupy the northern part of the island.

Journalist - Mark is an experienced travel journalist having published work in the industry for more than seven years. His enthusiasm for aviation news and wealth of experience lends itself to some excellent insight, with his work cited in Forbes amongst other publications. Based in Alicante, Spain.

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