On August 29 , 1969 , Khaled was part of a team that hijacked TWA Flight 840 on its way from Rome to Tel Aviv , diverting the Boeing 707 to Damascus . According to some media sources , the PFLP leadership thought that Yitzhak Rabin , then Israeli ambassador to the United States , would be on board ; he was not . She claims she ordered the pilot to fly over Haifa , so she could see her birthplace . No one was injured , but after the passengers disembarked , the hijackers blew up the nose section of the aircraft . After this hijacking , and a photograph of her ( taken by Eddie Adams ) holding an AK-47 rifle and wearing a kaffiyeh was reproduced in many publications , she underwent six plastic surgery operations on her nose and chin to conceal her identity and allow her to take part in a future hijacking , and because she did not want to wear the face of an icon
TWA Flight 840
TWA Flight 840 hijacking
Leila Khaled