Neerja Bhanot , Ashoka Chakra , Tamgha-e-Pakistan ( 7 September 1963 – 5 September 1986 ) was an Indian head purser for the airline who died while saving passengers on Pan Am Flight 73 which had been hijacked by terrorists during a stopover in Karachi , Pakistan , on 5 September 1986 . Posthumously , she became the youngest recipient of India 's highest peacetime gallantry , the Ashok Chakra Award , as well as several other accolades from the government of Pakistan and the United States . She was shot while helping passengers escape through the emergency exits . Her life and heroism inspired the biopic '' Neerja '' , released in 2016 and directed by Ram Madhvani
Pan Am Flight 73
Pan Am Flight 73
Neerja Bhanot