Skyjacking in
|
 |
|
Vo Anh Tuan, former Vietnamese
Ambassador to the United Nations, recalls details about the hijack in
September 1992. Photo: Tuoi
Tre
|
The man then shoved Tien out of the compartment,
overpowering the pilot and co-pilot and taking over the jet.
Much to everyone’s relief, lights were then turned on
in the passenger compartment, former ambassador Tuan recalled.
Flight attendants informed passengers of the reduction
in altitude and that they were preparing for landing.
“Fifteen minutes later, we heard nothing from the
stewardesses. It was getting dark. I clearly saw the street lights beneath,
which meant the plane had dropped to a worryingly low altitude,” he added.
The plane then suddenly gained altitude, striking fear
amongst the passengers.
“An Asian passenger is subduing the crew up there. I
think he’s a psycho,” Tien, the flight attendant, revealed to passengers as
she hurried down from the first-class section of the plane.
“He’s not a psycho. The plane is being hijacked,” the
former ambassador immediately told his wife and a provincial official on the
same flight.
In the cockpit, Tong coerced the captain into flying
around the downtown areas of Ho Chi
Minh City
“I spotted a man who was sporting something like a
parachute suit and a helmet in the first-class compartment. He was scurrying
back and forth and scattering stacks of fliers onto the ground,” the former
diplomat said.
Tuan grabbed a leaflet that read “Ly Tong,
Commander-in-Chief of the South Vietnam Uprising Army,” meaning he was
calling on people in the southern region to rebel against the
government.
Upon Tong’s command, the jet hovered several times and
made repeated dives above the city’s downtown areas.
The situation lasted for half an hour, sending the
passengers into panic, with some putting on their life vests.
One of the hostesses then requested the passengers to
fasten their seatbelts, as the crew was about to open the doors.
Tuan’s heart pounded hard when he heard this.
Everyone held their breath and braced for the worst.
After distributing the leaflets, Tong requested the
captain to maneuver the plane to an altitude of 2,300m and open the door for
him to make his parachute jump.
“We suddenly heard a deafening sound like that of a
bomb blast,” Tuan said.
A formidable gust flew into the cabin, blowing away
objects that had been placed in front of the passengers.
The plane teetered violently but remained airborne.
Following Tong’s jump, the captain steered the jet
toward an emergency landing at Tan
Son Nhat
Airport
The landing was over 30 minutes later than originally
scheduled.
The local police, fire trucks and ambulances had been
deployed on the ground by then.
 |
|
Hijacker Ly Tong. Photo: Internet
|
Uncertain whether Tong had accomplices, the police
officers requested all the passengers be interrogated.
As an ambassador, Tuan was spared the investigation
procedure.
“I was told by the crew later that the hijacker had
forced the pilot to steer the plane to District 8 before he made the jump and
ended up in a pond,” Tuan added.
Tong then made his way to a local neighborhood security
guard in plain clothes.
He offered to pay US$200 to the man if he agreed to
take him to a designated address.
The watchman then rode him straight to the police
station.
|
Born in 1946, Ly Tong was a pilot and first
lieutenant in the former
After 1975, he crossed border to the
Tong pleaded guilty at a court hearing, claiming he
had returned to lead the insurgents in southern
He was sentenced to 20 years behind bars and was
released early in an amnesty in 1998 before returning to the
In November 2000, only one day before then-U.S.
President Bill Clinton’s visit to
The man was apprehended by the Thai government and
convicted for hijacking and intruding on the country’s air space.
|
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét