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50-537: It maintained good relations with other terrorist groups, mainly the First of October Anti-Fascist Resistance Groups (GRAPO), who provided it with weapons and explosives, and with Arab socialist governments, such as Libya and Algeria , which provided financing. MPAIAC radio programs also encouraged Canary Islanders to " return to their roots " and popularize the Berber languages . Beginnings: Algerian foundation The MPAIAC

100-527: A 148° turn, which would lead back toward the still-crowded main apron . At the end of C3, the Pan Am would have to make another 148° turn, in order to continue taxiing towards the start of the runway, similar to a mirrored letter Z. Taxiway C4 would have required two 35° turns. A study carried out by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) after the accident concluded that making the second 148° turn at

150-528: A greater emphasis on a mutual misunderstanding in radio communications between the KLM crew and ATC, but ultimately KLM admitted that their crew was responsible for the accident and the airline agreed to financially compensate the relatives of all of the victims. The disaster had a lasting influence on the industry, highlighting in particular the vital importance of using standard phraseology in radio communications. Cockpit procedures were also reviewed, contributing to

200-737: A number of times to have disbanded the GRAPO after the remaining militants were captured. According to the Spanish police, GRAPO was disbanded after six of its militants were arrested in June 2007 but formally, the group has not announced its dissolution. GRAPO is included in the European Union 's list of terrorist organisations . GRAPO has its origins in the Organisation of Marxist–Leninists of Spain (OMLE), which dissolved itself in its first congress in 1975. At

250-416: A total of 583 fatalities, the disaster is the deadliest accident in aviation history . The two aircraft had landed at Los Rodeos earlier in the day, and were among a number of aircraft diverted to Los Rodeos due to a bomb explosion at their intended destination of Gran Canaria Airport . The airport had become congested with parked airplanes blocking the only taxiway , forcing departing aircraft to taxi on

300-452: The ATC clearance . Because the flight crew was performing the checklist, copying the clearance was postponed until the aircraft was in takeoff position. Shortly afterward, the Pan Am was instructed to follow the KLM down the same runway, exit it by taking the third exit on their left and then use the parallel taxiway. Initially, the crew was unclear as to whether the controller had told them to take

350-664: The Organisation of African Unity Unity (OAU), led by Algeria, which in a secret meeting declared the Canary Islands as a geographically African archipelago, alleging the juxtaposition geographical of the islands with respect to Africa . In the geopolitical context of the Arab Cold War , from 1975 to 1978 the Algerian intelligence services10 made Radio Alger available to the MPAIAC, which began radio broadcasts of La Voz de Canarias Libre for

400-544: The Spanish island of Tenerife . The accident occurred when KLM Flight 4805 initiated its takeoff run in dense fog, colliding with the rear of Pan Am Flight 1736 still on the runway. The impact and the resulting fire killed all 248 people on board the KLM plane and 335 of the 396 people on board the Pan Am plane, with only 61 survivors in the front section of the latter aircraft. With

450-423: The 747. Meurs had 9,200 flight hours, of which 95 hours were on the 747. Schreuder had 17,031 flight hours, of which 543 hours were on the 747. The aircraft was a Boeing 747-206B, registration PH-BUF, named Rijn ( Rhine ) . The KLM jet was carrying 14 crew members and 235 passengers, including 52 children. Most of the KLM passengers were Dutch; also on board were four Germans, two Austrians, and two Americans. After

500-540: The Canary Islands Archipelago in 1982. Antonio Cubillo was granted a royal pardon and returned to Spain. MPAIAC did not manage to govern any municipality on the islands before dissolving. Other pro-independence organizations that have succeeded MPAIAC, such as the Popular Front of the Canary Islands (FREPIC), have remained largely marginal. On November 1, 1976, the MPAIAC began terrorist activity through

550-574: The Canary archipelago. Thus, Algeria could favor its geopolitical interests in the area during the Western Sahara war , and promote the creation of independent Canary Islands favorable to its interests.13 At the beginning of February 1976, a delegation from the Democratic Junta of Spain formed by Rafael Calvo Serer , Santiago Carrillo and José Vidal-Beneyto visited Algiers and requested the closure of

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600-505: The GRAPO. This newly born movement was named after the killing of four Spanish policemen on 1 October 1975, the first violent action of the PCE(r). The "Antifascist Resistance Groups October First" (GRAPO) took this date as a starting point as a terrorist organization . Only five months later, after five workers were killed by the Spanish police during demonstrations in Vitoria-Gasteiz ,

650-616: The Guanche Armed Forces, detonating an explosive in the Galerías Preciados in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Following this attack in the Canary Islands capital, the following attacks targeted the Canary Islands tourism sector, attacking a hotel, numerous tourist offices and travel agencies like when in 1976 MPAIAC blew up a shopping center in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. on the capital islands. The MPAIAC supported El Rubio, murderer of

700-519: The MPAIAC caused an unintentional fatality in the attack on BBVA in La Laguna. Police bomb disposal specialist Rafael Valdenebro was mortally wounded while trying to deactivate the bomb planted by the MPAIAC. Valdenebro, 27 years old, was struck by fragments in the head, arms and legs and died 12 days later on March 8. The MPAIAC renounced the armed struggle and in 1979 expelled its founder and general secretary, Antonio Cubillo, for not agreeing with

750-669: The MPAIAC, the independence of the Canary Islands, was at stake in Spain's negotiations to join NATO in the second half of the 1970s. The United States left Spain with an understanding that, if it did not join NATO, it would support MPAIAC (which would be very unlikely since MPAIAC was a socialist and anti-imperialist group). Following the decision of the Government of Spain to begin the accession procedures. The Algerian radio station controlled by this armed group

800-596: The Navy soldiers guarding him. On Tuesday, June 14, 1977, the day before the general elections , they attacked Pescanova in Madrid . On January 2, 1978, they hijacked the ship Armas , which was headed to Valencia from Las Palmas, and diverted it to Oran . In the early hours of February 3, a bomb exploded at the Cervantes monument in Madrid. On February 24, 1978, the terrorist activity of

850-502: The PCE(r) told its sympathizers to take up arms and create the nucleus of a future Spanish " Red Army " which would be directed by a central command. A number of explosive devices were detonated in different locations in Spain on 18 July 1976, and GRAPO claimed responsibility for the coordinated explosions in the press, becoming well-known overnight. After the high-profile kidnapping of wealthy politician Antonio María de Oriol y Urquijo in 1976 and General Villaescusa in 1977 as well as

900-406: The air for two more hours), but they were ordered to divert to Tenerife. Los Rodeos was a regional airport that could not easily accommodate all of the traffic diverted from Gran Canaria, which included five large airliners. The airport had only one runway and one major taxiway running parallel to it, with four short taxiways connecting the two. While waiting for Gran Canaria airport to reopen,

950-429: The aircraft landed at Tenerife, the passengers were transported to the airport terminal . One of the inbound passengers, Robina van Lanschot, who lived on the island with her boyfriend, chose not to re-board the 747, leaving 234 passengers on board. Pan Am Flight 1736 had originated at Los Angeles International Airport , with an intermediate stop at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). The aircraft

1000-456: The beginning of 1976, two months after General Francisco Franco 's death, during the Spanish transition to democracy from dictatorship, the Communist Party of Spain (Reconstituted) (PCE-r) began a struggle against the political reforms. The PCE(r) restructured itself into different commissions; one of these was a "front against fascism", founded by Juan Carlos Delgado de Codex, which became

1050-505: The closure of the airport, diverting traffic to Tenerife North–Ciudad de La Laguna Airport , 120 km (75 mi) away and contributing to the Tenerife airport disaster , the deadliest accident in aviation history. The terrorist activities did not stop, that same month the MPAIAC militant Santiago Marrero entered the La Isleta barracks (Las Palmas) to steal weapons, dying in the shootout with

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1100-441: The difficulty of handling large aircraft such as the 747. Los Rodeos airport is at 633 meters (2,077 ft) above sea level , which gives rise to weather conditions that differ from those at many other airports. Clouds at 600 m (2,000 ft) above ground level at the nearby coast are at ground level at Los Rodeos. Drifting clouds of different densities cause wildly varying visibilities, from unhindered at one moment to below

1150-439: The diverted airplanes took up so much space that they had to park on the long taxiway, making it unavailable for the purpose of taxiing . Instead, departing aircraft needed to taxi along the runway to position themselves for takeoff, a procedure known as a backtaxi or backtrack. The authorities reopened Gran Canaria airport once the bomb threat had been contained. The Pan Am plane was ready to depart from Tenerife, but access to

1200-412: The end of taxiway C3 would have been "a practical impossibility". The official report from the Spanish authorities explained that the controller instructed the Pan Am aircraft to use the third taxiway because this was the earliest exit that they could take to reach the unobstructed section of the parallel taxiway. These instructions issued by the airport controllers indicated their lack of familiarity with

1250-444: The establishment of crew resource management as a fundamental part of airline pilots' training. The captain is no longer considered infallible, and combined crew input is encouraged during aircraft operations. Tenerife was an unscheduled stop for both flights. Their destination was Gran Canaria Airport (also known as Las Palmas Airport or Gando Airport), serving Las Palmas on the nearby island of Gran Canaria . KLM Flight 4805

1300-531: The first 747 to be hijacked : en route between JFK and Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico , it was diverted to José Martí International Airport in Havana , Cuba . Both flights had been routine until they approached the islands. At 13:15, a bomb planted by the separatist Canary Islands Independence Movement exploded in the terminal of Gran Canaria Airport, injuring eight people. Due to

1350-432: The first or third exit. The crew asked for clarification and the controller responded emphatically by replying: "The third one, sir; one, two, three; third, third one." The crew began the taxi and proceeded to identify the unmarked taxiways using an airport diagram as they reached them. The crew successfully identified the first two taxiways (C1 and C2), but their discussion in the cockpit indicated that they had not sighted

1400-475: The group is inactive yet not formally self-dissolved. Since its inception in 1975 until its last-known activity in 2006, it killed 84 people, including police, military personnel, judges, and civilians via bombings and shootings. A number of its militants were killed during bank robberies committed to raise funds for the organization. The group has also committed a number of kidnappings, initially for political reasons and later on for ransom . Its last attack

1450-399: The industrialist Eufemiano Fuentes and, at the end of 1976, facilitated his escape to Algeria. Meanwhile, on Sunday, March 27, 1977, a bomb exploded in the flower shop of the passenger terminal at Gran Canaria Airport , injuring 7 people, and a second bomb was announced at the airport, forcing the police to cut off air traffic while they were looking for the bomb. The chain of events forced

1500-491: The killing of more Spanish policemen, GRAPO became established as an urban guerrilla group, in a similar manner as Revolutionary Antifascist Patriotic Front (FRAP) had been in Francoist Spain . GRAPO increased its activity from 1979 onwards, including the bombing of a café in Madrid on 26 May 1979, which killed nine people. However, the group's level of support waned during the 1980s. The transitional democratic regime

1550-701: The leadership on some approaches. Cubillo continued to present himself as spokesperson and leader of the MPAIAC, delegitimizing the other group's use of the name. Subsequently, Cubillo founded the National Congress of the Canaries (CNC). Within the CNC there will also be disputes over the distribution of $ 25,000 and subsequent financial aid that supposedly went to its private account in France and that would have ended attempts at aggression among its members. The political objective of

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1600-484: The legal minimum the next. The collision took place in a high-density cloud. The Pan Am crew found themselves in poor and rapidly deteriorating visibility almost as soon as they entered the runway. According to the ALPA report, as the Pan Am aircraft taxied to the runway, the visibility was about 500 m (1,600 ft). Shortly after they turned onto the runway it decreased to less than 100 m (330 ft). Meanwhile,

1650-407: The passengers were brought back to the aircraft. The search for a missing Dutch family of four, who had not returned to the waiting KLM plane, delayed the flight even further. Additionally, Robina van Lanschot, a tour guide, had chosen not to reboard for the flight to Las Palmas, because she lived on Tenerife and thought it impractical to fly to Gran Canaria only to return to Tenerife the next day. She

1700-479: The political tension necessary to achieve the independence of Algeria, Algeria being precisely the country that most supported the MPAIAC. The MPAIAC, supported by the Algerian Government, strategically opted for a Pan-Africanist line, resorting to the nationalist exaltation of the ancient Canarian aborigines known as Guanches. With this, in 1968 he achieved the support of a Comité de Liberación ad hoc of

1750-411: The release of Hasel and all political prisoners, including members of PCE(r) and GRAPO. In February 2014, a Twitter user was convicted of glorifying terrorism for tweets praising GRAPO. Tenerife airport disaster The Tenerife airport disaster occurred on 27 March 1977, when two Boeing 747 passenger jets collided on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport (now Tenerife North Airport) on

1800-429: The runway was obstructed by the KLM plane and a refueling vehicle; the KLM captain had decided to fully refuel at Los Rodeos instead of Las Palmas, apparently to save time. The Pan Am aircraft was unable to maneuver around the refueling KLM in order to reach the runway for takeoff, due to a lack of safe clearance between the two planes, which was just 3.7 meters (12 ft). The refueling took about 35 minutes, after which

1850-411: The runway. Patches of thick fog were drifting across the airfield, so visibility was greatly reduced for pilots and the control tower . The subsequent investigation by Spanish authorities concluded that the primary cause of the accident was the KLM captain's decision to take off in the mistaken belief that a takeoff clearance from air traffic control (ATC) had been issued. Dutch investigators placed

1900-589: The station, to facilitate the Spanish Transition , and the concession to Cubillo was not withdrawn until 1978, in that year on April 5, Antonio Cubillo was the victim of an attempt on his life in Algiers, organized by the Spanish secret services, as a result of which he became disabled. MPAIAC made a formal declaration renouncing "armed struggle." after the Spanish government created the Autonomous Community of

1950-409: The third taxiway (C3), which they had been instructed to use. There were no markings or signs to identify the runway exits and they were in conditions of poor visibility. The Pan Am crew appeared to remain unsure of their position on the runway until the collision, which occurred near the intersection with the fourth taxiway (C4). The angle of the third taxiway would have required the plane to perform

2000-406: The threat of a second bomb, the civil aviation authorities closed the airport temporarily after the initial explosion, and all incoming flights bound for Gran Canaria were diverted to Los Rodeos, including the two aircraft involved in the disaster. The Pan Am crew indicated that they would prefer to circle in a holding pattern until landing clearance was given (they had enough fuel to safely stay in

2050-399: The time of the accident, Grubbs had 21,043 hours of flight time, of which 564 hours were on the 747. Bragg had 10,800 flight hours, of which 2,796 hours were on the 747. Warns had 15,210 flight hours, of which 559 hours were on the 747. This particular aircraft had operated the inaugural 747 commercial flight on January 22, 1970. On August 2, 1970, in its first year of service, it also became

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2100-487: Was a charter flight for Holland International Travel Group and had arrived from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol , Netherlands . Its cockpit crew consisted of Captain Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten (age 50), First Officer Klaas Meurs (42), and Flight Engineer Willem Schreuder (48). At the time of the accident, Veldhuyzen van Zanten was KLM's chief flight instructor, with 11,700 flight hours, of which 1,545 hours were on

2150-639: Was a Boeing 747-121, registration N736PA, named Clipper Victor . It was the first 747 to be delivered to an airline. Of the 380 passengers (mostly of retirement age, but including two children), 14 had boarded in New York, where the crew was also changed. All but five passengers onboard the aircraft were Americans; the non-American passengers were all Canadian nationals. The new crew consisted of Captain Victor Grubbs (age 56), First Officer Robert Bragg (39), Flight Engineer George Warns (46) and 13 flight attendants. At

2200-414: Was a Spanish clandestine Marxist–Leninist group aiming for the formation of a Spanish Republican state. The group was anti-capitalist , anti-imperialist , and strongly opposed Spain's membership in NATO . GRAPO's last attack was in 2006. After having been fairly active in the late 1970s and early 1980s, a dwindling number of its militants along with police actions allowed Spanish officials to claim

2250-407: Was arrested for condoning terrorism after he saluted one of GRAPO's imprisoned members in a music video . He was soon released from jail, but the charges were not dropped. Ten years later on 16 February 2021, Hasel was arrested and imprisoned again on similar charges by the social democrat PSOE -UP government, leading to anti-fascist groups staging mass demonstrations across the country demanding

2300-605: Was closed. Around 2003, some of the former members of the MPAIAC who were expelled at the time reconstituted this organization, although this reconstitution will not be recognized by the majority of the historical militants. On the other hand, the political activity of the reconstituted MPAIAC is practically non-existent and barely goes beyond the Internet. First of October Anti-Fascist Resistance Groups The First of October Anti-Fascist Resistance Groups ( Spanish : Grupos de Resistencia Antifascista Primero de Octubre, GRAPO )

2350-611: Was founded on October 22, 1964 in Algeria by the lawyer Antonio Cubillo, previously linked to Canarias Libre and voluntarily expatriated in 1962 for unclear reasons. He was joined by, among others, Ángel Cuenca, José I. Díaz «el Mexicano» " and Ángel Cabrera "el Rubio", a common criminal with a long career. The inspiration for their form of struggle was the National Liberation Front of Algeria . This movement, through armed attacks or bombs to civil and military institutions, generated

2400-517: Was in 2006, when GRAPO shot dead Ana Isabel Herrero, the owner of a temporary work agency in Zaragoza . In 2000, GRAPO's leader Manuel Pérez 'Arenas' was sentenced in a French court for criminal conspiracy with terrorist intent. Spain issued a request for his immediate extradition . To date GRAPO has not named a successor. Spanish Paralympian Sebastián Rodríguez was a member of GRAPO . In October 2011, Spanish hip hop artist Pablo Hasel

2450-573: Was not destabilized as the group had promised. In 1984, the Spanish authorities issued an anti-terrorist law inspired by the Italian model which facilitated police operations against GRAPO, and many arrests followed. GRAPO reacted by simplifying its structure while "waiting for better times". It continued its clandestine activities at a lower level by means of mobile militants, which easily formed and easily split up, becoming difficult to detect. Police work caused serious blows to GRAPO's structure. Currently

2500-406: Was therefore not on the KLM plane when the accident happened, and was the only survivor of those who flew from Amsterdam to Tenerife on Flight 4805. The tower instructed the KLM plane to taxi down the entire length of the runway and then make a 180° turn to get into takeoff position. While the KLM was backtaxiing on the runway, the controller asked the flight crew to report when it was ready to copy

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