Next's Pan Am Christmas jumper branded "offensive" by Lockerbie locals - what happened to Flight 103 35 years ago?

Lockerbie locals have slammed a Pan Am Christmas jumper sold by Next as 'disgraceful' and 'offensive' to bombing victims killed 35 years ago next week. The fashion retailer is embroiled in controversy for its decision to sell a festive jumper with the airline's logo featured on it. A petition has been signed by over 1,000 people in over a day calling for the festive jumper with the logo to be removed from the retailer's website. At the time of writing, around 1,180 people had signed the online petition.

In comments online, the jumper has been deemed "offensive and disrespectful", "disgusting" and "absolutely shocking". NationalWorld takes back at what happened to Flight 103 in light of the controversy.

What happened to Flight 103 above Lockerbie in 1988?

Pan Am's Flight 103 was destroyed over the Scottish town of Lockerbie on December 21 1988 when a bomb was planted on the plane. Some 270 people were killed - including 243 passengers, 16 crew members and 11 people on the ground - and the December event - four days from Christmas - is still remembered decades later.

The bomb blew a 50cm hole in the Boeing 747's fuselage as it was en route from Frankfurt to Detroit via a stopover in London. The incident remains the deadliest terrorist attack in the UK's history. An investigation found the attack to have been orchestrated by two Libyan nationals and 13 years after the bombing, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, a Libyan intelligence officer, was jailed for life after being found guilty of 270 counts of murder related to the incident.

However, in August 2009, he was released by the Scottish government on compassionate grounds after being diagnosed with prostate cancer. Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi agreed to pay compensation to the families of the attack - and always maintained that he never gave the order for it to be carried out.

Next controversy

The petition, launched by Phil Geddes on Change.org, reads: "As a resident of the town at the time of the Lockerbie bombing, an event that has left an indelible mark on the lives of many, hundreds of people, this item, in its design or message, is offensive and disrespectful to those affected by this tragic event.

"The pain and trauma it caused are still felt today by countless individuals around the world. To see a product that makes light of such a tragedy or uses it for commercial gain is not only insensitive but also deeply hurtful."

A number of those who have signed have personal connections to the tragic event. One said: "I worked at the local hospital the night of the Lockerbie disaster and it's as fresh in my mind 35 years later as it was back then. This jumper needs to be taken off the market immediately."

A second commented: "I attended Lockerbie Academy and this is repulsive!" Another commented: "I lost a friend on Flight 103. This is beyond distasteful." Another added: "As a former resident of Lockerbie, this is nothing short of disgraceful."