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Indian Airlines Flight 814
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | December 24, 1999 |
| Type | Hijacking |
| Site | Hijacked between Kathmandu and Delhi, landed at Amritsar, Lahore, Dubai and Kandahar by 5 Pakistanis |
| Origin | Tribhuvan International Airport |
| Destination | Indira Gandhi International Airport |
| Passengers | 174 |
| Crew | 15 |
| Fatalities | 1 |
| Survivors | 188 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Airbus A300B2 |
| Operator | Indian Airlines |
| Tail number | VT-EDW |
Indian Airlines Flight 814 (abbreviated IC-814) was a flight that flew from Kathmandu, Nepal's Tribhuvan International Airport to Delhi, India's Indira Gandhi International Airport. It was hijacked on Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24, 1999, shortly after the aircraft entered Indian airspace at about 5:30 p.m. Indian Standard Time by five Pakistani nationals. The hijackers stabbed to death 25-year-old Rupin Katyal. Ultimately, the plane landed in Afghanistan, where the hijackers agreed to release their hostages in exchange for the release of three Muslim extremists.
Contents |
The Indian Airlines (now renamed as 'Indian') flight 814 (VT-EDW) was hijacked on the eve of Christmas on Friday, December 24, 1999, shortly after the aircraft entered Indian airspace at about 5:30 p.m. Indian Standard Time. The identities of the hijackers were[1]
Anil Sharma, senior flight steward on IC-814, later recalled that a masked, bespectacled man threatened to blow up the plane with a bomb and ordered Captain Devi Sharan to "fly West".[1] The hijackers wanted Captain Sharan to divert the aircraft over Lucknow and head towards Lahore, but Pakistani authorities quickly refused permission as they were wary of being linked with the terrorists. Also, the fuel was not sufficient. Captain Sharan told the hijackers that they have to land in Amritsar, India.[1]
After landing at Amritsar, the flight crew were hoping that they will get some assistance and the hijacking would end. They asked for a sniper or a sharpshooter to go along with the browser and shoot at the tires to disable the aircraft.[1] But, for unknown reasons that didn't happen. The local forces at Amritsar were told to wait for the National Security Guards.
The hijackers asked for the plane to be refueled. At first the Indian Government did not agree, but after the hijackers killed a passenger named Rupin Katyal, they agreed to refuel the plane in order to gain some time to formulate a strategy. However, for reasons unknown, the plane was not refueled. The hijackers threatened the crew that they would kill everyone on board if the captain did not take off within 30 seconds. The Indian special force National Security Guards were nowhere to be seen. Later on it was revealed, much to the embarrassment of Indian Government, that the elite commando units were stuck in traffic near Amritsar. Nevertheless, the Airbus A300 took off for Lahore with almost no fuel. Somehow, IC 814 managed to land in Lahore. A few seconds after touchdown, the right engine of the aircraft flamed out due to fuel starvation. The plane was quickly re-fuelled and took-off, bound for Dubai, UAE. In Dubai some 25 passengers were released along with the body of Mr. Katyal. From UAE the plane headed for Afghanistan, then under the Islamic regime of the Taliban which was sympathetic to the hijackers.
The Taliban authorities did not cooperate with the Indian authorities to secure a release of the hostages by disallowing Indian commandos to storm the plane. They refused the request to let Afghan commandos storm the plane, as well. Their plea was that they wouldn't allow a foreign military outfit to operate in Afghanistan and they themselves are not capable to undertake such an operation. The Taliban encircled the plane with tanks and heavily armed militia. Negotiations opened up between the Indian embassy officials and the hijackers.
It was only after a week had passed that the Indian government sent its special crisis group to Kandahar for serious negotiations. By that time the media outcry in India was so great that a quick resolution to this crisis was needed as a political face-saving exercise.
As a result the government accepted [2] the demand to release the following terrorists in exchange for the release of the passengers and crew of flight IC 814.
The erstwhile Indian foreign minister Jaswant Singh went personally to Kandahar to deliver the prisoners over to the hijackers and receive the passengers back in exchange for a safe passage to the hijackers.
What followed has gone down as the longest hijacking in aviation history. But then there were lessons to be learned. First of all, the hijacking of IC-814 was well-planned; it caught the entire intelligence ministry unprepared. But then, the biggest lapse on the part of the government was its failure to stop the hijackers in Amritsar. In Kandahar, Taliban militia surrounded the plane, pre-empting any Indian commando operation.
This all ensured that the Government of India succumbed to their demands, leaving it ruing the missed opportunity to foil the hijack in Amristar.
After negotiations between the India government and the hijackers, the hostages were freed eight days after the hijacking occurred.
On December 31, 1999, the freed hostages of the Indian Airlines Flight 814 were flown back to India on a special plane. The hijackers disappeared into Afghanistan in their vehicle before releasing a Taliban official they had taken hostage. Since then no hijacker has been found. It is believed that they might have been killed in the US bombing of Afghanistan. It was one of the most visible failure of Indian political and defence hierarchy.[citation needed]
The Hindi movie Zameen is a Bollywood adaptation of the Flight IC 814 hijacking. In the movie, a flight by Indian Airways is hijacked to Pakistan-administered Kashmir by terrorists.
A documentary, with re-enactments, was made on this hijacking and was shown on National Geographic Channel. [3]
- Information on hijacked Indian Airlines Flight IC-814, Embassy of India
- Photographs of the Pakistani Hijackers
- My experiences aboard IC-814
- Indian Airlines Capt. Devi Sharan was awarded the 1999 Safe Skies Award
- Aziz hand seen in Kandahar hijacking
- IC-814 hijackers free birds in Pak
- IC-814 Captain becomes a celebrity in India
- Aviation Safety.net entry on the hijacking