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TerroristA statistical overview of terrorist${fi$Xiffi.Wff.lffi.g$ from January 1968 through June 1982

ot\

July 1982

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Skylacklng: The seizure of an airplane,with whatever hostages may be on board,

to force some action, whether it be move-ment to another country or agreement bythe authorities involved to some otherdemand,

Terrarlsl Sky/acking: The seizure of an

airplane through the use or threat ofviolence for political purposes by individ-

uals or groups. Tenorists use skyiackingsto force authorifies to agree to their de'mands, mosl frequently for money or the

release of imprisoned terrorisfs, or fopu blicize perceived grievances.

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Terrorist Skyiackings

According to our records, 684 skyjackingshave been attempted since January 1968,

approximately 9 percent of all terroristattacks since that date. These attemptshave resulted in at least 500 deaths and400 injuries. More than one-third of thehijackers demanded passage to Cuba.Nearly 40 percent of the aircraft belongedto US airlines, most notably Eastern, Na-

tional, and TWA.

Trende

The number of atternpted skyjackings

reached a high in 1969-70, declinedsf ightly in 1971-72, decreased by half in1973, and has remained fairly constantsince then. The declines resulted from in-

creased public support for measures tocounter the skyjacking threat; the 1970

multiple skyjacking by Palestinian terroristswas the catalyst for the Hague and Mon-

treal conventions on aerial hijacking. In

January 1973, luggage inspection and thefull screening of boarding passengers wereinstituted in the United States and at inter-

national airports in other countries, reduc-ing the total number of attempted skyjack-ings in 1973 to half that of the previousyear. The US Federal Aviation Administra-tion reports that more than 20,000 fire-arms have been detected since thosesecurity measures were instituted.

Of the 684 skyjacking attempts since Jan-uary 1968, we consider 108 to have beenterrorist (that is, politically motivated) sky-jackings, More than one-third of theseresulted in casualties, numbering 212 deadand 186 wounded. Terrorist skyjacking in-cidents were initiated in 43 countries and

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ended in 47 countries, most of them inLatin America, Western Europe, and theMiddle East. Forty-seven terrorist groups,

of which almost half were Palestinian and

Latin American, claimed credit for the

skyjackings.

The number of terrorist skyjacking at-tempts was highest in the early 1970s; it

declined by half in 1973, as did all skyjack-ing attempts, because of increased airportsecurity. Between 1973 and 1980, terror-ists averaged five skyjacking attempts per

yeat. A significant increase occurred in

1981. This was partly attributable to the

successful Pakistan Liberation Army sky-jack in March, which probably encouragedother attempts; increases in terrorist andinsurgent activities in Central America and

northern South America contributed to in-

creases in terrorist skyjackings there. Four

terrorist skyjackings have taken place thusfar in 1982, suggesting a probable de-crease for the year from the 1981 total.

Skyiackinge in 1982

There were 10 skyjackings through June of1982, of which four were terrorist skyjack-ings. Two occurred in Latin America, andin both cases the terrorists were grantedasylum in Cuba. In the third case, the

terrorists were granted asylum in Syria; in

the fourth, they voluntarily surrendered toBritish authorities. No one was killed in a

terrorist skyjacking in the first half of 1982;

five people were wounded. Guns wereused in all four attempts, and explosiveswere used in all but one.

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Totaf Skyiackings and Terrorist Skyiackings

January 1968-June 1982

1 968 69 70 71 72

tlD

73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82Jun

Total skyjackings

Terrorist skyjackings

Terrorist Groupg

A total of 48 terrorist groups-or 416individual terrorists-have claimed creditfor skyjackings since the beginning of1968 (see appendix A) . Of the 47 terroristgroups responsible for skyjackings, sixwere Palestinian and 14 were Latin Ameri-can; the Palestinians accounted tor 20percent and the Latin Arnericans tor 21

percent of all terrorist skyjackings. ThePalestinian groups were most active in theearly 1970s; they have not cfaimed re-

sponsibility for a skyjacking since 1977.Their most frequent targets were lsraeli

airlines.

The Popular Front for the Liberation ofPalestine (PFLP) has attempted moreskyjackings than any other group, and itsskyjackings have often had major political

consequences. Five PFLP skyjackingswere concurrent. In September 1970, 1 1

rnembers of the PFLP attempted to hijackfive aircraft to the Jordanian desert, wherethey hoped to bargain for the release ofPalestinians jailed throughout Europe.

Three aircratt were diverted to Dawson'sField in Jordan, where they were destroyedby explosives. The passengers were res-

cued by Jordanian troops; seven Arabguerrillas were eventually released from

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European jails in response to the skyjack-ers' demands. The Jordanian troopslaunched a full-scale military campaign todrive the Palestinian guerrilla groups out ofJordan. The incident resulted in the activa-tion of Black September (BSO) , whichhas since been the most active of Palestin-ian terrorist groups. In 1976, the PFLPhijacked an Air France aircraft to Entebbe,Uganda, precipitating a successful lsraelicornmando raid on the airport to rescuethe passengers; in 1977, German com-mandos storrned a hijacked Lufthansaplane in Mogadiscio, Sornalia, after PFLP

mernbers killed the pilot. Our records showthat the PFLP has not been involved in askyjacking attempt since 1976; it clairnedresponsibility for 13 during 1968-76.

The Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) , an

Ethiopian separatist group, also claimedresponsibility for numerous skyjacking at-tempts. The El F was most active in 1969;

our records show only one attempted sky-jacking si,'lce 1972. The group's targetswere primarily Ethiopian dornestic flights.

The Latin American terrorist groups havemaintained a low level of skyjacking activi-ty since January 1968, with a sharp in-

crease in 1981, when they claimed respon-sibility for six skyjackings, The increasewas partly attributable to Bandera Roja'smultiple skyjacking on 7 December 1981,

the first rnultiple event since the Dawson'sField incident in 1970. Eleven gunmen hi-jacked three Venezuelan airliners on do-mestic flights, ultirnately diverting thern toHavana with intermediate stops in Colom-bia, Honduras, Guatemala, and Panama.Their dernands, which included a ransomof $ 10 million and release of seven Vene-zuelan political prisoners, were not met.

They were taken into custody by Cubanauthorities. Latin American terrorists have

exclusively targeted Latin American air-lines, especially those of Colombia andVenezuela.

Other prominent groups that have at-tempted skyjackings include Fatah(through BSO) , the Japanese Red Army(JRA) , and the People's RevolutionaryArmy of Argentina. (See appendix A lor acomplete list.)

3

Skyiackinge Reeulting in tnjuries orDeatha

. On 17 Decernber 1973, prior to hijackinga Lutthansa aircraft, Palestinian terroriststhrew grenades into a pfane loading inRome for a flight to Beirut, killing orinjuring nurnerous passengers, including14 Americans.

. On 21 Novernber 1974, four members ofthe Arab Nationalist Youth Organizationfor the Liberation of Palestine diverted aBritish Airways flight to Tunis, where theykilled a passenger in public view to speedup negotiations for the release of feda-yeen prisoners.

. On 21 May 1976, six members of theMoro Nat'onal Liberation Front hijackeda plane to Zamboanga, where Philippinetroops engaged them in a gun batile thatleft 10 passengers and three hijackersdead and 22 passengers wounded.

We recorded 40 terrorist skyjackings be-tween January 1968 and June 1982 thatresulted in death or personal injury:

1 968

1 969

1 970

1971

1972

1 973

197 4

1 975

1 976

1977

1 978

1 979

1 980

1981

1 982

The number of these skyjackings has fluc-tuated in no discernible patterns, with highcounts in 1970 and 1gTT, and a low countin 1978. Three such incidents have oc-curred in the first half of 1992, in contrastto four in all ol 1981.

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A total of 164 passengers and crew and 29terrorists (a combined totaf of 193) have

been injured as a result of skyJackingssince January 1968; five were US citizens.Fifteen US citizens have died, 14 in the1973 Rome incident. Over half of the sky-jackings that resulted in casualties oc-curred in Western Europe and the MiddleEast. Twenty-five terrorist groups clairnedresponsibility for these incidents, most of-ten the PFLP, the ELF, and the JRA.

Locations of Skyjackinge

Between January 1968 and June 1982,

planes originating in over 40 countries

were skyjacked, with Lebanon the most

frequent point of origin. Planes originatingin the United States, lsrael, Ethiopia, India,

Colombia, and Venezuela were also fre-quent targets. The skyjackers' most fre-quent boarding point was also Lebanon.

Nearly 40 percent of all terrorist skyjackers

dernanded passage to three countries:

Cuba, Libya, and Jordan. The actual diver-

sion point was most often Cuba, with

Lebanon, Libya, Jordan, and Egypt less

frequent destinations.

Two-thirds of all terrorist skyjackings since

January 1968 have occurred in Latin

Arnerica, the Middle East, and Western

Europe. Only 7 percent have occurred in

North America (see map).

The Operation

In over half of the atternpted skyjackings

since January 1968 the terrorists used an

explosive device-or the threat of one-totake over the aircraft. Terrorists used guns

in at least 33 skyjackings.

Our records of the negotiation process,

including terrorist demands and govern-

ment responses, while incompfete, indicate

distinct trends. The skyjackers' most fre-quent demands have been for the release

of political prisoners and safe passage to

another country. Governrnent responses toskyjacker demands have been aboutequally divided among compromise, capit-ulation, and no response.

Incomplete records show that the coun-tries to which skyjackers most often directtheir dernands are lsrael, Venezuela, andLebanon. These countries are not, howev-

er, those whose airliners are hijacked mostfrequently: US aircraft have been sky-jacked most otten. British, West German,and lsraeli airliners have been frequent

targets. Skyjackers were granted asylummost frequently by Cuba, Algeria, and

Libya. Other countries granting safe haven

included Dubai, lraq, Lebanon, North Ko-

rea, South Yernen, Syria, Tunisia, and

Uganda.

Outcome

Terrorists achieved logistic success, or

were able to divert the aircraft to desired

destinations, in 70 percent of their at-tempted skyjackings between January

1968 and June 1982. The pattern of suc-

cessfuf skyjackings across time suggests

that success breeds other attempts and,

conversely, failure discourages suchaction.

On 2 March 1981, three members of the

Pakistan Liberation Army seized a Paki-

stani plane and diverted it to Afghanistan.

Soviet authorities in Kabul made no effortto terminate the hijacking, and after unsuc-

cessful negotiations with Pakistani officials,

the terrorists ordered the plane flown toSyria. Further negotiations resulted in the

release ol 54 Pakistani prisoners in ex-

change for the release of the hostages on

2 March (figure 4) . The terrorists, whowere eventually freed by Syrian authorities,received extensive media coverage. The

PLA's success probably encouraged sub-

sequent atternpts-including the hijacking

of an Indonesian plane to Thailand on

28 March by five members of a fanaticMuslirn group, four of whom were killed

A

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Terrorist S ackinqs by Reqion, tanua 1968-June 19gZ*

f^; -€52*=vttt' =P-4p>

,/t'

.- \--*-

i'Figures Indlcate the number of Incidents oer

uss/?/lriastern Fiurope

2(I .9Y")

in America

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Terrorist Skyiackers' Logistic Successu

January 1968-June 1982

when Indonesian commandos stormed theplane, and the Dev Sol hijack of a Turkishplane to Bulg aria on 24 May, which was

concluded in midoperation when the pas-

sengers overpowered two of the terrorists.

Probably as a result of these well-publi-

cized failures, fewer skyjack attempts were

made during the remainder of 1981. There

was, however, a spate of attempts tohijack planes in Eastern Europe to seek

asylum in the West.

6

lmplementalion ofSecurity Measures

1 968 69 70 71 72 73 ?4 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82Jun

uLogistic success notes whether the skyjacker was able todivert the plane to a deqtination selected by him.

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2 March 1991. Release ol passengers held in Pakistan LiberationArmy hijack of a Pakistani airliner, after 13 days of negotiations.

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Appondix A

Terrorirl Groupe Reeponriblelor Skyiackingr

This list includes names of organizations responsible either by claim or attribution lorspecific skylackings noted in lhe statistics. Some attacks may have been carried outwithout the approval or even loreknowledge of that organization's leaders. Claims ofresponsibility may also have been falsely made by opponents of the organization in an at-lempt to discredit it.

Some of the names listed are cover names for organizations wishing to deny responsibil-ity for a parlicular action. Some names may have been used by common criminals to mis-lead pollce investlgators or by psychotics soeking public recognition.

Abd aFNasir Movement (ESypt) Leftlst Command of ChileAl Sadre Brigade (Lebanon) Lorenzo Zelaya Popular RevolutionaryAnanda Marg (lndia) Forces (Honduras)

Arab Nationalist Youth Organization for Moro Nattonal Liberation Front (MNLF;

the Liberation ol Palestine (ANYOLP) Phllipplnes)

Armed Communist League (Mexico) National Liberation Alliance (ALN: Brazil)Armed Revolutionary Vanguard of Pal- National Liberation Army (ELN;

mares (VAR-Palmares; Brazil) Colombia)Bandera Roja (Venezuela) National Liberation Party (Lebanon)

Black September Organization Nepalese Communist Party(Fatah/ Palestinian) Organization for the Struggle Against

Croatian National Liberalion Forces World lmperialismDal Khasa (lndia) Pakistan Liberation Army (PLA)Darul lslam Holy War Command Palestine Popular Struggle Front

(lndonesia) People's Liberation Army (EPL;

Democratlc Front for the Liberation of Pal- Colombia)ostine (DFLP) People's Revolutionary Army (ERP-ARG;

Dev Sol (Turkey) Argentlna)Dominican Bepublic Leltist Revolutionaries People's Revolutionary Army Zero PointDutch Revolutionaries (Punto Cero, Argentina)Eagles of National Unity (South Yemen) Popular Front for the Liberation ol Pales-Eritrean Liberation Front (Ethiopia) line (PFLP)

Freedom lor the Serbian Fatherland PFLP-General Command(SEPO) Popular Liberation Movement (MPL;

Honduran Revolutionary Union (URP) Djibouti)International Organ of the Proletariat Provisional lrish Republican Army

(Venezuela) (Provos)

Japanese Red Army Revolutionary Youth MovementJordanian Free Ofticers Movement (Tanzania)

Kabataang Makabayan (Philippines) Revolutionary Movement of the LeftKashmiri Liberation Front (lndia) (Chile)

Komando Jihad (lndonesia) Turkish People's Liberation Army (TPLA)Kurdish Sympathizers 19th of April Movement (M-19; Colombia)

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Appendix B

tlajor Airllnec Whole Planer Have BeenSkyiackcd by Terrorirte

This list includes the names of major aidines that have been victims ol terrorist skyjacking

attempts since January 1968. Derived from media coverage of these attempts, the list

may not cover airlines that have not reported terrorist attempts.

Aerolineas Argentinas

Aeropesca (Golombia)

Lineas Aeropostal Venezolana(Venezuela)

Air DjiboutiAir FranceAir Kuwait

Air Tan zania CorporationAir Vietnam

Alyemda (South Yemen)

Alia Royal Jordanian Airlines

Alitalia (ltaly)American Airlines

Austral L.ineas Areas (Argentina)

AVENSA (Venezuela)

Avianca (Colombia)

British Airways

Cruzeiro do Sul (Brazil)

Delta Airlines (United States)

Dundalk Aero Club (lreland)

Ecuatoriana International (Ecuador)

Egyptian Airlines

El Al Airlines (lsrael)

Ethiopian Airlines

Garuda Indonesian Airlines

Global International Airlines (United

States)Indian Airlines

lran National Airlines

lraqi Airways

JAL (Japan)

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (the

Netherlands)

LACSA (Costa Rica)

LADECO (Chile)

LAN (Chile)

LANICA (Nicaragua)

Libyan Arab AirlinesLufthansa (Germany)

Malay Air $ystem (Malaysia)

Middle Eastern Airlines (Egypt)

Mexicana de Aviacion (Mexico)

Netherlands Antilles Airlines

Olympic Airways (Greece)

Pakistan International Airlines

PAL (Philippines)

Pan Am (United States)

Royal Nepalese AirlinesSabena (Belgium)

SAHSA (Honduras)

SAM (Colombia)

SAS (Scandinavian Airlines System)

SwissairTAME (Ecuador)

TAP (Portugal)

Turkish AirwaysTWA (United States)VASP (Brazil)

VIASA (Venezuela)

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Appendix C

A Chronotogy Ol SignificantTerroriet Skyiackings 1908.82

The country over which the skyjack occurred is in bold type before each incident.

1 968 22 JulyItaly. An El Al 707 in flight from Rome to Tel Aviv washijacked by three rnembers of the popular Front for theLiberation of Palestine (pFLp) . They ordered the planewith its 10 crewmembers and 38 passengers to Dar Al-Bayda Airport, Algeria, and demanded the release of anunspecified number of Arabs from lsraeli jails. The Algeri-ans detained the hijackers and immediatefy release d 2gnon-lsraeli passengers. lsrael eventually released 16 Arabsin exchange for the hostages, who were set tree on1 September.

29 AugustItaly. TwA Flight 840 from Rome to Tel Aviv was hijackedby two members of the PFLP. Upon landing in Damascus,syria, they ordered afl passengers otf the plane and blewup the cockpit. severaf passengers were injured whileevacuating the aircraft, none seriously. The Syrians re-leased all passengers except six lsraelis, who were held forthe release of prisoners in lsraeli jails. on S December, theInternational Red Cross arranged for return of the hos-tages to lsrael in exchange for 13 Syrian and s8 Egyptianprisoners.

31 MarchJapan A Japan Air Lines 727 from Tokyo to Kukuokawas hijacked shortly after takeoff by nine members of theJapanese Red Army (JRA) , who demanded to be flownto P'yongyang, North Korea. An efaborate ruse to makeSeoul's airport look like P'yongyang failed, but the hijack-ers were persuaded to let the passengers disembark inexchange for passage to North Korea. They frew toP'yongyang on 3 April and were granted asylum.

22 JulyLebanon. An olympic Airways TZI carrying 47 passen-gers from Beirut to Athens was hijacked by five membersof the Palestine Popular Struggle Front. They demandedthe release of seven fedayeen detained in Greek jails. Withthe International Red cross acting as intermediary, theGreek Governrnent yielded to the terrorists' terms, and thefedayeen were released on 12 August.

1969

1970

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1971

6 Septe mberWest Germany. Two members of the PFLP hijacked aTWA 707 flying from Frankfurt to New York and ordered it

to fand at Dawson's Field, Zerka, Jordan, a former British

Air Force landing strip in the desert.

Swltze rland. Two members of the PFLP hijacked aSwissair DC-8 en route from Zurich to New York and

ordered it to land at Dawson's Field in Jordan.

lndla, Three members of the PFLP hijacked a BahrainiBOAC VC- 10 en route from Bombay to London and

ordered it to land at Dawson's Field in Jordan.

Once the three planes were in Jordan, the hijackers

demanded the release of fedayeen held in West German,

Swiss, and lsraeli prisons. On 12 Septernber, the planes

were evacuated and destroyed by PFLP explosive ex-perts. Jordanian troops undertook a major military cam-paign to oust Palestinian forces from Jordan, and negotia-

tions became of secondary importance to the embattledPFLP. The hostages were rescued by Jordanian troops.

On 29 September, the Swiss Government announced therelease of seven Arab guerrillas by Switzerland, West

Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Netherlands. A Pan Arn flight from Amsterdam was

hijacked by two members of the PFLP, who ordered theplane to Cairo where it was destroyed. The two were

supposed to have been part of a PFLP group that was tohijack an El Al plane to Dawson's Field, but they weredenied boarding on that plane. Seven passengers were

injured while evacuating the plane.

Nelherlands. PFLP terrorist Leila Khaled and Nicaraguan

Patrick Arguello attempted to hijack an El Al aircraft on

the Tel Aviv-Amsterdarn-New York route. An armed El Al

steward shot and killed the rnale hiiacker and Khaled was

overpowered by passengers. The plane landed in London.

Their original plan had called for them to join the otherplanes hifacked by the PFLP on this day to Dawson's Field

in Jordan. Khaled was released on 29 September in

exchange for the release of the hostages at Dawson's

Field.

30 JanuaryIndla. An lndian Airlines flight en route from Srinagar toJarnmu was hijacked to Lahore, Pakistan, by two mem-

bers of the Kashmiri Liberation Front. They demanded

asylum and the release of 36 prisoners held in Kashmir by

the Indian Government. The Indian Governrnent refused to

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negotiate with the terrorists, whereupon they blew up theplane. Both terrorists were injured. The Indians protested

the Pakistani handling of the case and denied them

overflight privileges for military and eventually for commer-

cial planes.

| 972 22 FebruaryIndla. Five Palestinian terrorists hijacked a Lufthansa 7 47

en route from New Delhi to Athens and diverted it to Aden,

South Yemen. The passengers were released, and theWest German Governrnent paid a $5 million ransom for

the release of the 16 crewmembers. The hijackers later

surrendered to South Yemeni authorities, who released

them on 27 February.

I MayAustrla, A Sabena plane, flying the Vienna-Athens-TelAviv route, was hijacked by four members of the Black

September Organization ,3SO) and diverted to Lod

Airport. The group demanded the release of 317 tedayeenprisoners. lsraeli security forces attacked the plane andkilled two hijackers. Five passengers were wounded in thegunfight and one later died. Life sentences were given to

the two surviving hijackers.

15 AugustArgenJlnE, Six members of the People's RevolutionaryArmy (ERP) escaped from Rawson Prison and hijacked

an Austral Airliner to Santiago, Ghile. They were grantedpolitical asylum by President Allende, who alfowed them

to ffy to Cuba on 25 August. The Argentine Government,which had demanded extradition, recalled its ambassadorthe next day. The government's response caused demon-strations throughout Argentina, and the day has become a

rnajor anniversary for leftist revolutionaries in that country.

75 SeptemberSreden. Three Croatian emigres hijacked an SAS airlinerand ransomed lts passengers for six Croatian lerroristsbeing held in Swedish jails. The aircraft was flown toSpain, where the Croatians surrendered to Spanish au-

thorities. The six who had been released in Sweden werepermitted to leave Spain for Paraguay in June 1974, On

5 December 1974, a Spanish military court sentenced thethree hijackers to 12 years in prison. On t i feOruary1975, General Franco granted them a full pardon.

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1973

29 OctoberLebanon. Two members of BSO hijacked Lufthansa flight

615 (en route from Beirut to Munich) to secure the

release of the three surviving members of the BSO team

that had massacred 1 1 members of the lsraeli Olympic

team in Munich on 5 September 1972. The West GermanGovernment complied, and the hijacked plane was keptffying until the three released terrorists landed at Zagreb,Yugoslavia, where the hijacked plane picked them up. Theplane was flown to Tripoli, Libya, where the passengers

and crew were released.

B DecemberEthlopla. An Ethiopian Airlines 8-720 from Addis Ababato Asmara and Paris was hijacked shortly after takeoff by

seven students, all rnembers of the Eritrean Liberation

Front (ELF) , who demanded the release of imprisoned

members of the ELF. Security guards immediately opened

fire. One of the hijackers exploded a hand grenade, which

tore a hole in the floor of the first-class section, stopped

one of the engines, and damaged the rudder. Of the 100

passengers, nine were wounded. Six of the hijackers died;

the seventh was seriously wounded. The plane landed

safely in Addis Ababa.

25 NovemberLebanon. Three armed rnembers of the Arab Nationalist

Youth Organization for the Liberation of Palestine (AN-

YOLP) , a front organization for the PFLP, hijacked a KLM

747 with 247 passengers aboard as it was en route frornBeirut to New Delhi. After stops in Cyprus, Libya, Malta,

and Dubai, the hijackers surrendered to Dubai authorities,

who offered the terrorists safe conduct in exchange for the

hostages. On 8 December the hijackers were taken to Abu

Dhabi, where they presurnably were turned over to the

PLO.

17 DecemberI3aly, Five Palestinian terrorists opened fire in the customs

area of the Leonardo DaVinci Airport in Rome. The

terrorists took several hostages, proceeded to a Pan Arn

7OT that was loading for a flight to Beirut, and threw hand

grenades into the plane-killing or injuring numerouspassengers. The terrorists, with their hostages, then

boarded and hijacked a Lufthansa aircraft to Athens and

Kuwait, where the hijackers surrendered. They were flown

to Cairo on 2 March 1974, where they were to be tried by

the PLO, but Egyptian authorities would not release them.

They were eventually released in November 1974, on the

dernand of four other fedayeen hijackers, and went toLibya.

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3 MarchLebanon. A British Airways flight en route to London with102 persons aboard was hijacked by two armed membersof the ANYOLP shortly after takeoff from Beirut. Theplane was diverted to Amsterdam, where the paSsengeisand crew were permitted to evacuate the plane before thehijackers destroyed the aircraft by setting the plane'sliquor supply on fire. The duo was captured by police whilerunning frorn the plane; they were sentenced to five years'imprisonment but were released several months later in anagreement with four other hijackers who demanded theirrelease.

21 NovemberDubal. After climbing over an airport fence, four membersof the ANYOLP seized a British Airways jetliner on arefueling stop en route trorn London to Singapore. Theyforced the pilot to fly to Libya and then to Tunis, wherethey demanded the release of 13 terrorists imprisoned in

Cairo and two in the Netherlands. The terrorists woundedtwo members of the crew when they seized the plane andkilled one passenger in public view during the prolonged

negotiations in Tunis. Five of the tedayeen prisoners in

Cairo and the two in the Netherlands were taken to Tunisand handed over to the hijackers. The terrorists surren-dered to the Tunisian authorities on 25 November andreleased all remaining passengers and crew. They weresubsequently turned over to the PLO and llown to anunknown destination.

1 Marchlraq. Three armed men, all apparently Kurdish sympathiz-ers, hijacked an lraqi Airways plane on a domestic flightand diverted it to Tehran. A passenger was shot to deathand 10 persons, including one hijacker, were wounded in agun battle between the hijackers and lraqi security officersaboard the plane. The hijackers surrendered to lranianauthorities in Tehran. On 7 April they were executed by an

lranian firing squad.

7 AprilPhlllpplnes. A Philippine Airlines (PAL) jet on a domes-tic flight was hijacked by three members of the MoroNational Liberation Front (MNLF) who demanded therelease of four political prisoners and asylum. In Manila the70 passengers were released in exchange for crew-members and a PAL vice president who were retained as

hostages. After several intermediary stops, the planelanded at Bangkok, where the Phitippine Governmentprovided another because of mechanical difficulties. Theplane arrived in Libya on 13 April, and after some delay,the hijackers were given asylum in Libya.

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21 MayPhlllpplnes. A Philippines Airlines iet flying lrorn Davao

to Manila was hijacked by six members of the MNLF who

diverted the plane to Zamboanga. Their demand of a

ransom and a plane to fly them to Libya was refused.

After 48 hours of stalemate, the plane exploded in flames

in an exchange ct gunfire between the hijackers and

Philippine troops. Ten passengers and three hijackers

were killed, and 22 hostages were injured. The three

surviving hijackers were subsequently convicted and sen-

tenced to death.

27 JuneGreece. An Air France aircraft en route from Tel Aviv to

Paris was hijacl<ed out of Athens by seven rnembers of the

PFLP. Atter refueling at Benghazi, Libya, the aircraft flew

to Entebbe Airfield in Uganda, where the crew and more

than 240 passengers were held hostage. The hiiackers

demanded the release of 53 terrorists imprisoned in lsrael,

West Gerrnany, France, Switzerland, and Kenya. They

were provided additional weapons by the Ugandans, who

also guarded the hostages. On 1 July lsraeli commandosattacked the airport and secured the release of the

remaining hostages. Three hostages and one lsraeli officer

were killed in the raid, as well as seven hijackers and a

nurnber of Ugandan soldiers.

23 AugustEgypt. An Egypt Air 737 en route from Cairo to Luxor was

hijacked by three armed terrorists claiming to be members

of the Abd al-Nasir Movernent. They dernanded to be

flown to Libya, but allowed the plane to land at Luxor torefuel. They demanded the release of five Libyans impris-

oned in Cairo in connection with two assassination at-

tempts. Egyptian commandos stormed the plane and

caplured the hijackers; no passengers were injured. The

terrorists were convicted and sentenced to hard labor forlife.

70 SeptemberUnlted States. A TW A 727 from New York to Chicago

with 86 passengers on board was hijacked by six Groatian

nationalists, who diverted the plane to Newfoundland,

lceland, and finally Paris. Their demands included drop-ping propaganda leaflets over London, Montreal, and

Paris anq publication of a communique in major newspa-

pers, both of which were met. The hijackers also directedpolice to a bomb placed in a subway locker at Grand

Central Terminal in New York. While trying to deactivatethe bornb, one policeman was killed and three others were

seriously injured. The group surrendered to French au-

thorities, and they were immediately returned to the

United States. All the passengers and crew were released

unharrned.

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I JulyLebanon. A Kuwaiti plane en route from Beirut to Kuwaitwas hijacked by six Fatah dissidents who claimed to bemembers of the Friends of the Arabs. They demanded therelease of 300 prisoners in Arab jails. The aircraft landedin Kuwait for refueling, and the hijackers released theirhostages in two groups there, in exchange for safe

conduct to South Yemen. Once airborne with three Arabofficials who had volunteered to serve as hostages, thehijackers redirected the plane to Damascus. After 10

hours of unsuccessful negotiations with Syrian authorities,five of the hijackers overpowered their leader and surren-dered to the Syrians.

28 Septemberlndla. JRA guerrillas hijacked a Japan Airlines plane

shortly after takeoff from Bombay and forced it to land inDacca, Bangladesh. The Japanese Government agreed tothe terrorists' demands for'he release of nine imprisonedJapanese and $6 million in exchange for the more than150 hostages on the aircraft. Some hostages were re-

leased at refueling stops in Kuwait and Syria. Upon arrivalin Algiers on 3 October, the hijackers, along with six of thereleased prisoners, released the remaining hostages andsurrendered to Algerian authorities. They were expelledfrom Algeria shortly thereafter, and their whereabouts areunknown.

13 OctoberSpaln, A Lulthansa plane en route from Majorca toFrankfurt was hifacked by four Arabic-speaking terrorists,who directed the plane to refueling stops in Rome, Nico-sia, and several Middle Eastern countries. They demandeda $1S-million ransom and the release of two Palestiniansjailed in Turkey and 1 1 Gerrnan terrorists. The hijackerskilled the pilot before the pfane arrived in Mogadiscio,Somalia, oh 17 October. The next day an FRG commandoteam stormed the plane, freeing all of the hostages, killing

three of the terrorists, and wounding the fourth, who wasconvicted and received a 2}-year prison sentence.

4 Decembertlalaysfa. A Malaysian aircraft that was hijacked shortlyafter departing Kuala Lumpur crashed while preparing toland in Singapore. There were no survivors. Investigatorslater announced that the hijackers shot both pilots just

before the crash. No group claimed responsibility.

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20 JunellnlJed States, An American Airlines iet from New York

to Chicago was hijacked by a Serbian nationalist, who

demanded the release of a Serbian priest imprisoned in

Chicago and a safe flight to Peru. The hijackers, the priest,

and four other Serbs-all mernbers of Freedom for the

Serbian Fatherland (SEPO) -had been convicted on 24

May for the 1975 bombing of the Yugoslav Consulate in

Chicago. After landing in Chicago, the hijacker released

the passengers and all but three crewmembers. His lawyer

boarded the plane and they flew to lreland's Shannon

Airport, where he was taken into custody by lrish authori-

ties who returned him to the United States.

7 SeptemberLebanon. Three Lebanese Shiite Muslirns hijacked an

Alitalia DC-8 en route from Tehran to Rome shortly after arefueling stop in Beirut. They were protesting the 1978

disappearance of their spiritual leac'er, lmam Mousa Sadr,

and demanded passage to Cuba, where they wished topresent their case for Sadr to the Havana Nonaligned

Conference. The plane landed in Rome for refueling and

negotiation. Cuba granted permission for the plane to land

there providing all hostages were released in Rome, but a

tropical storm precluded that flight, and the hijackers werepersuaded to fly to lran. lranian authorities took the

hijackers into custody; ltalian officials said they would

request extradition.

13 OctoberTurkey. A Turkish Airlines 727 on a ffight from Munich toAnkara was hijacked by five gunmen of unknown affili-

ation after departing lstanbul for Ankara. The plane was

diverted to Diyarbakir for refueling. The hijackers demand-

ed to be flown to Tehran (the pilot relused because of itslocation in a war zone) and then to Jidda, Saudi Arabia.

Turkish Army commandos stormed the plane and freed'the rnore than 100 passengers and crew, killing onepassenger and one of the hijackers. Four of the hijackers

and 13 passengers were wounded.

15 DecemberColombla. An Avianca airliner on a domestic flight be-

tween Bogota and Pereira was hijacked by 12 guerrillas,

members of the 19th of April Movement (M-19), in an

apparent attempt to disrupt the Latin American summit

rneeting that was to open in Santa Marta, Colombia, the

next day. The plane made stops in Santa Marta, Barran-quilla, Panama Gity, Mexico City (for refueling) , and

Havana, where the hijackers were taken into custody by

Cuban authorities. Various numbers of passengers were

released at each stop. No injuries were reported.

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1 981 2 MarchPaklstan, Three armed hijackers forced a Pakistan Inter-

national Airlines plane, ofl a flight from Karachi to Pesha-

war with 148 passengers and crew on board, to fly toKabul, Atghanistan. The trio identified themselves as

members of a group called Al Zulfigar, a group reportedly

connected with the Pakistan Liberation Army. They de-

manded the release of people detained during the recent

student unrest in Pakistan. During the course of the

negotiations in Kabul, the hijackers released 28 women

and children and shot and kifled one passenger who wasidentified as the first secretary of the Pakistani Embassy in

Tehran. On 8 March the hijackers forced the aircraft to flyto Damascus, Syria. After further negotiations with Paki-

stani officials, 54 of the jaifed prisoners were released and

flown to Syria on 14 March. The hijackers surrendered toSyrian authorities later that day.

24 MarchHonduras, After taking off from Tegucigalpa, a New

Orleans-bound HonduranT3T was hijacked by five arrned

individuals who claimed to be members of the Popular

Liberation Movement (MPL) -the armed action unit of

the People's Revolutionary Union (URP) , an offshoot of

the Comrnunist Party of Honduras. The plane with 93passengers and crew was diverted to Managua, Nicara-gua, where the hijackers released 37 passengers and

demanded the release of 15 Salvadoran leftists iailed inHonduras. When negotiations failed to rnaterialize, the

hijackers ordered the pilot to fly to Panama. There-apparently under the impression that the Government of

Honduras would free the Salvadoran prisoners-they re-

leased the remaining hostages and turned themselvesover to Panamanian authorities.

28 MarchIndonesfa. Five hijackers armed with handguns and gre-nades forced a Garuda fndonesian Airways DC-9 to fly toPenangy, Malaysia, where one hostage was released. Theplane was refueled and flown to Bangkok, where thehijackers demanded the release ol 20 people jailed in

Indonesia. The hijackers were described as members of afanatic Muslim group cafled the Komando Jihad (HolyWar Comrnand) . A British passenger and one of theAmericans on board escaped on 29 March; the Americanwas wounded by the hijackers as he ran from the plane.

on 31 March Indonesian cornmandos storrned the plane;

four of the five hijackers were killed in the gun battle, aswell as the plane's captain and one commando. Theremaining hijacker is apparently under arrest.

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24 MayTurkey. Four men hijacked a Turkish Airlines DC-g on adornestic flight frorn lstanbul to Ankara shortly after it left

fstanbul with 120 passengers and crew. The plane was

diverted to Burgas airport in Bulgaria, where the hijackersdemanded the release of prisoners lrom Turkish jails and a

sum of money. They threatened to kill the five Americans

on board if their demands were not met. On 25 May two of

the hijackers left the plane to "hold a news conference"and were arrested by Bulgarian authorities. The pair who

remained on the plane were overpowered by their hos-

tages; five passengers were injured during the struggle.

Turkish authorities identified two of the four terrorists as

members of Dev Sol (Revolutionary Left) and have

indicated that they plan to seek extradition.

26 SeptemberYugoslavle. While on a domestic flight, a Yugoslav Air-

lines Boeing 737 carrying more than 100 passengers and

crew was hijacked just before landing in Belgrade. Three

armed Croatians comrnandeered the plane and requested

to be flown to Tel Aviv. The lsraelis refused to permit theplane to land, and it then proceeded to Larnaca, Cyprus,The passengers and crew staged a mock fire and alarm

and fled the plane by the emergency exits. The hijackers

then surrendered to Cyprus police. They were returned toBelgrade under guard on 27 September.

7 DecemberVenezuela. Three airliners, carr.ying a total of more than

250 passengers and crew on domestic flights, were hi-jacked over Venezuela by members of Bandera Roja

armed with hand grenades and automatic weapons. One

plane was diverted to Aruba and then to Barranquilla,

Colombia, joining the two other planes that had already

arrived in that city. After 10 hours on the ground in

Barranquilla, two of the planes flew to Tegucigalpa, Hon-

duras, and the third tlew to Guatemala Gity, Guatemala.

All three planes then proceeded to Panama and from

there flew to Havana, Cuba, where hostages not previous-

ly freed were released and the hijackers taken into custo-dy by the Cuban authorities. Their demands included aransom of $ 10 million and freedorn for seven Venezuelanpolitical prisoners.

7 Decemberlialy. A Libyan jet on a flight from Zurich, Switzerland, to

Tripoli, Libya, with 44 passengers and crew was diverted

to Beirut, Lebanon, by three Lebanese Muslim gunmen.

After refueling, the plane flew to Athens, Greece, where a

woman and two children were released. The jet then flew

to Rome, ltaly, and back to Beirut. During the second stop

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in Beirut the hijackers took hostage 30 passengers de-planing from a flight that had just arrived from London andheld them until the hiJacked plane was refueled. TheLibyan aircraft then flew to Tehran, lran, where lranianofficials pledged to mediate the hijackers' demands forinlormation on the fate of their spiritual leader Mussa Sadr,who had disappeared in August 1978 during a visit toLibya. On 8 December the plane left Tehran and for thethird time landed in Beirut. After brief negotiations withNabih Barri, the Amal leader who was present at theairport, the hijackers released the 35 hostages they wereholding and turned themselves over to airport securitypersonnel and the Syrian contingent of the Arab deterrentforce (ADF) present at the airport.

27 JanuaryColombla. A Colombian 727 with approxirnately 130

passengers and crew, incluCing two US citizens, was

hijacked shortly after takeoff from Bogota. The seven

hijackers claimed to be members of the M-19. They forced

the pilot to return to Bogota and then to fly to Cali, where

the aircraft was damaged when it hit a truck that was

blocking the runway. The hijackers threatened to blow up

the plane and all remaining hostages if another aircraftwas not provided. A srnall executive jet was provided by

Colombian authorities and the hijackers ffew to San

Andres for refuefing and then on to Havana, where theyrequested asylum.

24 FebruaryLebanon. Gunmen attempted to hijack a Kuwaiti 707 just

after the plane landed at the Beirut Airport from Tripoli,

Libya. The 12 Shiite gunrnen ran toward the plane firingweapons, forced 105 deplaning passengers and crewback onto the plane, and demanded the release of their

Shiite leader fmam Mousa Sadr. There were several ex-changes of gunfire, and one burst of automatic weapons

fire hit the control tower before the hijackers agreed torelease their hostages in return for safe conduct to aSyrian army post near the border. Two peopfe were

reported to have been wounded during the incident. As a

result of the atternpted hijacking, the airline announcedthat it was suspending all of its regular flights to Beirut.

26 FebruaryTanzanla. Four armed men, accompanied by their fam-ilies, hijacked an Air Tanzania 737 on a domestic flightwith about 100 passengers and crew. The plane wasforced to fly to Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Greece, andStansted, England. The hijackers claimed to be members

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of the Revolutionary Youth Movement of Tanzania. Theythreatened to blow up the plane (explosives were found

wired to the aircraft doors and in a toilet, according to one

press report) if President Nyerere did not resign. The co-pilot was slightly injured Just before the plane landed inAthens. The hijackers released the remaining hostages in

Stansted and th-on sent their weapons olf the plane with

two of their children before surrendering to British

authorities.

28 AprilHonduras. An airliner on a domestic flight from La Ceibawith 48 passengers, including 13 US citizens, was hijacked

by four members of the Lorenzo Zelaya Popular Revolu-

tionary Forces. They diverted the plane to Tegucigalpa

Airport, where they released 15 passengers'and demand-

ed $ 1 million and the release of political prisoners hefd by

the Honduran Government. On 1 May, 1 1 passengers

escaped from the plane during the early morning hours;

two people were injured during the escape. The hijackers

refeased the remaining 15 hostages in exchange lor aplane to fly thern to Cuba. Cuban authorities took the four

into custody upon their arrivaf in Havana.

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Department of State

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