A Ukranian man is now in custody after attempting to hijack a Turkish airliner with the intent of rerouting the plane to Sochi, Russia.
The Pegasus Airlines Kharkov-Istanbul flight had 110 people on board when a passenger sitting in seat 2-F stood up and claimed he had a bomb on board. The plane’s flight crew immediately sent out a hijack signal to officials at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport and F-16s were immediately scrambled to the area from Balikesir Airport.
According to CNN, the man’s intent was to divert the plane to Sochi, Russia where the Olympic Opening Ceremony was currently ongoing.
The plane safely landed at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport where security forces surrounded the plane in a safe zone. The man was tricked into believing that the plane was being landed in Sochi. Turkish Special Forces boarded the plane and apprehend the suspected hijacker. There are no reports of any injuries.
Story developing…
