20 Years Since the Helios Airways Tragedy

Today marks 20 years since the Helios Airways tragedy. On August 14, 2005, a Boeing 737, en route to Prague with a stopover in Athens, crashed near Attica, resulting in the deaths of 121 people.

The aircraft took off from Larnaca Airport. At 9:37, it entered the Athens FIR. At 10:07, the Eleftherios Venizelos Airport control tower was unable to contact the aircraft. At 10:20, it was reported that there was a problem with the aircraft's air conditioning system.

Two F-16 fighter jets took off at 10:55. The pilots found that the co-pilot was slumped over, while the captain was absent. Flight attendant Andreas Prodromou attempted to take control of the aircraft.

At 12:00 the engines stopped, and at 12:05 the aircraft crashed in the mountains of Attica.

Dinos Prodromou, father of flight attendant Andreas Prodromou, spoke about the tragic day and how his son ended up on the flight.

Watch the report by Evangelos Agapiou.