Date: | Friday 18 January 1985 |
Time: | |
Type: | Airbus A300B4 |
Owner/operator: | Eastern Air Lines |
Registration: | |
MSN: | |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 132 |
Aircraft damage: | None |
Category: | UI |
Location: | Orlando International Airport, FL (MCO) -
United States of America
|
Phase: | En route |
Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
Departure airport: | Newark International Airport, NJ (EWR/KEWR) |
Destination airport: | Miami International Airport, FL (MIA/KMIA) |
Narrative:A lone male hijacked Eastern Airlines Flight 403 en route from Newark (EWR) to Miami (MIA) with 123 passengers and 9 crew members aboard. The hijacker emerged from the rear lavatory shouting in Spanish that he wanted to go to Cuba. The hijacker, holding a "Bic" type lighter in one hand and a bag in the other, told passengers and crew that he had poured gasoline on himself and the floor of the aircraft. He also claimed to have explosives inside the bag that he held in
his hand. The aircraft was diverted to Orlando, Florida and landed at approximately 01:14 a.m. The hijacker, believing he had landed in Cuba, dropped his bag and lighter, enabling the crew to overpower him. A subsequent investigation revealed that the hijacker's bag contained a folded newspaper and no evidence of any flammable liquid was found in the aircraft or on the hijacker's person. The hijacker reportedly wanted to return to Cuba to see his family.
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