Tropic Air Flight 711
.jpg) A Tropic Air Cessna 208 Grand Caravan similar to the aircraft involved | |
| Hijacking | |
|---|---|
| Date | 17 April 2025 |
| Summary | Hijacking by passenger |
| Site | over Belize City |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX |
| Operator | Tropic Air |
| Registration | V3-HIG |
| Flight origin | Corozal Airport, Belize |
| Destination | John Greif II Airport, Belize |
| Occupants | 16 (including hijacker) |
| Passengers | 14 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Fatalities | 1 (hijacker) |
| Injuries | 3 |
| Survivors | 15 |
On 17 April 2025, a Tropic Air Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX, operating as Tropic Air Flight 711 was hijacked by a passenger armed with a knife while flying in between the Belizean towns of Corozal and San Pedro.[1] The hijacker was shot dead by an armed passenger after the plane performed an emergency landing at John Greif II Airport.
Background
[edit]Aircraft
[edit]The aircraft was a Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX operated by Belize airline Tropic Air registered as V3-HIG.[2]
Passengers and crew
[edit]On board the flight there were 14 passengers, including the hijacker, of which two were American nationals and a small child.
Hijacking
[edit]The flight was operating as Flight 9N711.[3] At 08:17 CST (UTC−6), the aircraft took off from Corozal Airport headed to John Greif II Airport.[4][2] Six minutes later, the aircraft began squawking 7700, indicating a general emergency.[2] The plane made a sharp turn and began to circle over the Belizean coast. While over the Caribbean Sea, the aircraft requested that other aircraft in the area, including an helicopter of Astrum Helicopter Tours, keep track of it.[4] The aircraft flew over Belize City until it nearly ran out of fuel and landed, at which point the hijacker began stabbing passengers with a knife. Three were injured while others ran to the back of the plane. The plane then landed in Belize City. Upon landing, another passenger with a license to carry a firearm shot the hijacker dead. All three injured victims were taken to a hospital. A 49-year-old United States national and military veteran Akinyela Sawa Taylor was identified as the hijacker. The hijacking lasted for about an hour and a half.[5] His motive was unknown but he demanded the pilot to take him out of the country. Terrorism cannot be ruled out.[6]
Reactions
[edit]U.S. Embassy in Belize public affairs officer Luke Martin said the embassy expressed its regret over the incident.[5] Police commissioner Chester Williams said that it was still unknown how the hijacker managed to smuggle a knife on board, but he cited the lack of security screenings in the country's smaller airports as the probable cause.[7]
Tropic Air said the attempted hijacking was a "serious and unprecedented inflight emergency".[5] The CEO of the airline also described as that the actions of the pilot were "nothing short of heroic", and that they will be offering support to the injured passengers.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Miller, Joshua Rhett; Stanton, Andrew; Lamon, Jason (17 April 2025). "Tropic Air plane hijacked by knife-wielding man". Newsweek. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
- ^ a b c Labanauskaite, Goda (18 April 2025). "Passenger saves 15 on Tropic Air flight from armed hijacker". AeroTime. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
- ^ Humes, Aaron (17 April 2025). "Government promises "thorough inquiry" into hijacking incident; no link to "broader threats"". Breaking Belize News. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
- ^ a b Bennett, Brianna (18 April 2025). "U.S. National Hijacks Tropic Air flight; Hijacker Dead". Channel 5 Belize.
- ^ a b c "Plane passenger shoots, kills US hijacker on Belize flight". Agence France-Presse. New Zealand Herald. 17 April 2025. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
- ^ Duncan, Natricia (17 April 2025). "US man shot dead after hijacking small passenger plane in Belize". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
- ^ "US citizen shot dead after hijacking small plane in Belize". CNN. Reuters. 17 April 2025.
- ^ Halsall, Cherise; Gibbs, Anselm; Forrester, Megan (17 April 2025). "American citizen hijacks small plane in Belize, 3 injured: Police". ABC News.
