‘Last Flight to Kuwait – the Secret of BA Flight 149’

‘Last Flight to Kuwait – the Secret of BA Flight 149’ is a 90-minute film documentary, directed and produced by Peter Nicholson for BBC 2 and shown during the Channel’s Iraq week. Stephen Davies was responsible for the initial conception and the research.

In the evening of 1st August 1990 a British Airways jumbo jet destined for Kuala Lumpur left Heathrow after a delay. It touched down in Kuwait City crew, passengers and some members of a two of the nine members of a special force were taken as hostages and many were used as human shields. By the time the plane reached Kuwait, Saddam Hussein’s Iraq invasion had already began.

The film documents the experiences of those on board or the first time, and, in asking why 149 was cleared for flight at Heathrow, reveals the secret of the aircraft’s last flight. The secret, it is argued, concerns a government sanctioned presence of a special taskforce.

The research consisted of examining the background to the aircraft being grounded and then cleared, conducting interviews with almost all surviving hostages, visiting locations to talk to personnel and others, undertaking the legal aspects of bringing the research findings to light. The research formed the basis of a drama documentary.

The researcher has been part of a request to the House of Lords for compensation for the hostages but this has been denied on two occasions. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6053948 joined a pressure group to enquire into the UK Government’s prior knowledge of the likelihood of the capture and hostage taking. Thus far a hearing has taken place in the House of Commons on 27th April 2007 and recorded in Hansard.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansard/cm070427/debtext/70