The Boeing 737-800 plane was flying from Dhaka, Bangladesh, when a passenger attempted to enter the cockpit at gunpoint.

The plane landed uneventfully.

All Passengers and crew members disembarked while the security forces tried to negotiate with the purported hijacker. He was later shot by the security forces when he refused to surrender and was taken to a hospital where he died.

An investigation into the incident is underway.

The post Biman Bangladesh Airlines Plane Lands Safely After Hijack Attempt first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

Tassili Airlines flight SF-2210 made an emergency landing in Oran, Algeria, on October 14th.

The plane heading from Algiers to Tlemcen, Algeria, was diverted after it lost communication with the ATC.

However, while trying to send a transponder signal for loss of communication, the crew mistakenly set the code that indicates unlawful interference.

The plane landed safely and was surrounded by security forces.

The post Tassili Airlines Flight Makes Emergency Landing in Algeria first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

The pilot of the flight, en-route from Ho Chi Minh City to Vinh, sought permission for emergency landing after the cabin began de-pressurizing and oxygen masks deployed. However, instead of sending the ’general emergency’ code 7700, the pilot mistakenly sent code 7500 which means ‘unlawful interference’.

Emergency services were ready at the scene to handle hijacking situation when the Airbus A321-200 landed safely. None of the 140 people aboard was harmed.

The situation later got cleared and the airline released a statement confirming that the emergency landing was due to a technical issue and there was no hijacking incident.

The incident is under investigation.

The post Plane Experiences Technical Issue, Vietnam Airlines Pilot Accidentally Sends Hijacking Signal first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

The plane was chartered by the old man for a business trip from Sydney suburb of Bankstown to Cowra. According to the Acting Inspector Gareth Smith, the man started acting erratically mid-air. “The pilot said that he started grabbing the controls, turning off fuel lines, and turning buttons randomly on and off,” he said.

The 23-year-old pilot had to fight and restrain the elderly passenger to control the plane for emergency landing. The old man sustained head and facial injuries in the process and was transported to hospital.

The charter company Australia by Air later said in a statement, “The pilot displayed excellent airmanship and skill during the landing, and we thank him for his professionalism.”

Police are investigating the incident.

The post Elderly Passenger Forced Emergency Landing in Sydney first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

Wearing Airport Security Force uniforms, running shoes and large backpacks stuffed with water, dried fruits and heavy ammunition, a group of 10 insurgents arrived at the airport’s cargo terminal in two mini vans. They then started firing, entered the airport and split into two groups. One of them attacked the airport’s ‘Fokker’ gate as a diversion while the other assaulted the cargo terminal.

According to the authorities, the insurgents intended to reach the nearby passenger terminal, which at the time, was packed with hundreds of passengers and staff members. However, security forces, including paramilitary rangers, put up a strong resistance and did not let the attackers achieve their target.

The intense gun battle lasted more than five hours. Security forces killed 7 attackers. Three others died after they detonated the suicide-bomb belts they were wearing.

Authorities confirmed that in addition to the insurgents, at least 18 people, including airport security forces personnel and other airport employees, were killed in the incident. No passengers were harmed. All flights were diverted to other airports.

Claiming responsibility for the attack, the Taliban said it was a response to the recent air strikes in their area near Pak-Afghan border. Their motive was to hijack a passenger aircraft. A Taliban spokesman, Shahidullah Shahid, said, “The main goal of this attack was to damage the government … by hijacking planes and destroying state installations…This was just an example of what we are capable of, and there is more to come. The government should be ready for even worse attacks.”

The post Pakistan’s Karachi Airport Under Attack by Taliban first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

After thorough investigation, the police officials learned that Matt Christopher Lockley was actually looking for the toilet after waking up from deep sleep. He mistook the cockpit door for the toilet door.

The special crime director of Bali police, Suryambodo Asmoro, said “The suspect we released because he has good intentions to go back to his country on his own, So he is going back alone, not accompanied or escorted.”

Lockley thanked the Indonesian authorities “I want to say thank you to the Indonesian police and authorities…They only followed procedures and they have provided me with a lot of care and support and I’m grateful for everything they’ve done.”

He denied the accusations made by the Virgin Australia officials about his being drunk. He said that he had only taken Panadol, Voltaren and Coca Cola before getting on the plane.

This post is an update of “Passenger Tries to Break Into the Cockpit; Virgin Australia Flight Landed in Emergency due to Hijack Scare”

The post Indonesian Authorities Drop Charges against the Alleged Virgin Australia ‘Hijacker’ first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

A Virgin Australia Airlines flight en route from Brisbane to Bali, Indonesia, was forced to make emergency landing after the flight crew reported an attempted hijacking by a passenger.

The Boeing 737-800 was approximately 180 nautical miles away from Denpasar International Airport (about 30 minutes before the scheduled landing time), when a 27 year old Australian passenger, Matt Christopher Lockley, started banging at the cockpit door and tried to break in. The flight crew hand-cuffed him, took him to the cabin crew area and sent a mayday signal to the control towers in Makassar and Denpasar, indicating a possible hijacking attempt. The Bali airport authorities then prepared for an emergency landing protocol for the flight VA41, which was carrying 139 passengers and 6 crew members.

According to a Transport ministry official Herry Bakti, the emergency signal was received at about 2pm local time. The authorities from Virgin Australia confirm that the pilot had sent the standard signal code for ‘unlawful interference’, after which standard emergency response protocols were adopted.

The plane made an uneventful emergency landing and the Bali Police Chief, Inspector Benny Mokalu confirms that none of the passengers or crew members were harmed. The Indonesian military troops arrested Lockley, after the plane touched the ground.

Matt Christopher Lockley hails from Queensland, Australia and holds a driving license and a plumbing industry council card. The cabin crew reported that he looked ‘unstable’ and ‘paranoid’ during the flight. Police officials said that he claimed that he was hammering the cockpit door because he wanted to take some medicines from his luggage.

Heru Sudjatmiko, Virgin Australia’s Bali manager maintains that a drunk passenger tried to enter the cockpit which forced the emergency landing of the plane. It was not a hijacking attempt, it was a ‘miscommunication’. “I repeat, this is just a miscommunication. How the miscommunication occurred, I cannot answer because I wasn’t there. But it’s not true to say that the plane was hijacked…. I don’t know exactly what happened when the pilot communicated with the air traffic controller at Ngurah Rai,” he said.

Lockey is being investigated by the local police and it is not clear what charges will be made against him.

The post Passenger Tries to Break Into the Cockpit; Virgin Australia Flight Landed in Emergency due to Hijack Scare first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

The co-pilot told ATC the plane was being hijacked, and after he landed, climbed down a rope from the cockpit, and told ground police forces that he was the hijacker.

Ethiopia, which has a reputation of targeting journalists, opposition and minorities, has a deteriorating human rights record, and owns Ethiopia Airlines. Charges against the co-pilot could result in a twenty year prison sentence.

No one was injured in the hijacking, but two Italian fighter jets “escorted” the plane to Geneva. Two hundred and two people were aboard.

The post Co-pilot accused of hijacking Ethiopian Airlines flight first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

An F-16 Turkish military fighter jet was called to provide an escort.

The flight landed in Istanbul (on the Asian side of the airport where Pegasus has its hub) where the Ukrainian man was taken into custody.

There was no bomb. None of the 110 passengers were hurt.

The passenger was just intoxicated.

Videos Below

The post Pegasus “Sochi Olympics” Hijack Attempt first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.

The post Tianjin Airlines Flight 7554 first appeared on George Hatcher's Air Flight Disaster.