5 Hijackings that never had terror as a motive

The world is in a constant state of war against terrorism and it seems like no matter how many times we strike them it won’t go down. They are like the mythical creature ‘Hydra’ — no matter how many heads we severe, another one will rise up from the dead. Same is the case with terrorism. The world has been battling them for decades and yet somehow they are able to piece their strength together and strike us back with all they have. Disasters like Hollywood shootout, 9/11, the attack on France are some of the events that are really hard to forget and then there are some events that went unnoticed and didn't fetch any headlines. Here, we have covered some bizarre events of hijacking that were recorded but not reported as much.

1. Egyptian Hijacking of flight MS181 aka “I want to talk to my ex-wife”

This flight’s hijacking took place merely few hours ago. It has been reported that the flight was supposed to make her way from Alexandria to Cairo. It was hijacked amidst the route and was forced to land in Lanarca. Flight MS181 has 81 people onboard is currently sitting at the Lanarca Airport. The hijacker took control over flight and threatened to blow up the flight with his suicide vest. Reports suggested that all the ruckus was because of a woman. The hijacker has demanded to speak with a Cypriot lady, called Marina Parashkou. Who is also his ex-wife. The situation is now being sorted out and the lady is being called down to the Airport to aid the authorities in negotiations.

2. The seriously strange case of D.B Cooper aka ‘The Master of All Hijackings’

You must be aware of this hijacking, as it has been recorded and termed as the most insanely complex hijacking in the history. It took years and years for authorities to figure out what really happened that night. Dan Cooper bought a one way ticket to Seattle. He had a briefcase with him and in that briefcase, a bomb. He sent a message to flight attended using a paper note which read “I have a bomb in my briefcase. I will use it if necessary. I want you to sit next to me. You are being hijacked” Upon reading this the flight attendant and crew had to follow his orders. DB Cooper demanded 200,000 $, four parachutes and refueling truck to be made ready on their arrival. Having no other choice but to obey him, authorities came through with his demands. DB did the same and in exchange for meeting his needs, he let the passengers and a part of the crew free but didn’t let the remainder to go as he wanted to go elsewhere from the Airport. The flight took to the air once again but this time with no destination in mind and upon DB’s mercy. DB wasn’t a ruthless fella he had no plans of spreading terror. As soon as the flight peaked heights, DB parachuted out with the money to a journey no one knows, he completed or not. Till this day FBI has been unable to find a single trace of DB and the case is still “Unsolved”.

3. Hijacking of flight 812 Philippine aka “I am a Genius”

This hot head decided to seize flight 812 of philippines with a hand grenade and a gun. He fired few shots inside the flight and one of them even struck the bulk head. He then went on and demanded to be let into the cockpit which, fortunately didn’t happen as the crew never allowed him in. Now confused and puzzled and seeing his plan falling apart, he then ordered the passengers to put out their valuables in a bag. After he was done mugging the people on board, he asked the crew to lower the altitude of the plane so he can jump to safety. This genius didn’t have a parachute, instead of spending money on buying one, this Einstein bought a home made chute on the hijack. As it was expected the chute malfunctioned and it didn’t even have a proper rip-cord. He panicked, now being too afraid to take the leap, he grabbed a door but was pushed away from it, by an attendant. Poor guy fell from the skies and landed on a mud. According to the police reports, hijacker did survive the fall. What he couldn’t survive was his stupidity and the mud, which ultimately ended his life.

4. Hijacking of Cathay Pacific seaplane aka “First Hijacking”

This is the first ever recorded hijacking that ever took place in the history. It was done by man who wanted to take over the seaplane. This hijacking took place on 17 July 1948. Cathay Pacific seaplane was making its way to Hong Kong from Macau. The hijacker had every intention of taking over the plane but things didn’t turn out too well and he ended up crashing the plane into the sea off Macau killing himself along with 25 more. The crash only had a single survivor who lived to tell the tale.

5. Hijacking of Boeing 737 aka “I need more beer”

This has got to be the most bizarre case of hijacking and it can easily be termed as worst of all times. Don’t worry it’s not the kind of worst you guys must be thinking, it’s that kind of worst which no hijacker can think off. This hijacker seized control of Braathens SAFE Boeing 737 on june 21, 1985. The flight had total of 121 people on board among which 5 were crew members and 116 were passengers. This guy was apparently drinking heavily during the whole episode, as reports suggests that he was fed-up with the world and society, so he decided to do something new for a change and apparently hijacking was something new for him. He let the passengers of the flight go only after speaking to Minister of Justice and Prime Minister of Norway. Luckily, no one was harmed in this incident and he then surrendered to authority in exchange for more beer!

Author: Ayank Chourasia

To read more such interesting stories, download Reacho.