Police
Passenger leaves hijack threat note because he did not want to leave sick wife behind
The Air India Airbus A320neo aircraft operating as flight AI 772 was preparing to fly from Kolkata to Mumbai on Wednesday.
An Indian passenger allegedly caused panic by leaving a note threatening to hijack an Air India flight from Kolkata to Mumbai because he did not want to travel abroad and leave his sick wife alone.
Police said the passenger had been arrested in connection with the incident. During interrogation, he admitted his involvement.
On Wednesday, an Airbus A320neo aircraft operating as Air India flight AI 772 was preparing to fly from Kolkata to Mumbai.
Just moments before takeoff, the airport’s Air Traffic Control (ATC) received a hijack warning from the pilot. The alert triggered panic at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata.
Flight crew members found the note containing the hijack threat in the aircraft’s washroom. The matter was subsequently reported to security forces and police.
Following an investigation, police arrested the male passenger.
According to police sources, the arrested man has cancer. His wife is also suffering from the same disease. He was scheduled to travel to South Africa for work. However, he did not want to leave his sick wife alone and travel abroad.
During interrogation, he reportedly said, “That is why he did such a thing.”
However, considering his serious illness, police have withheld the passenger’s name and identity on humanitarian grounds for the time being. He is scheduled to be produced before the Barrackpore court on Thursday.
Police at NSCBI police station are investigating whether there was any other motive behind the incident or whether anyone else was involved.
A similar scare occurred at Kolkata airport on October 24. On that day, the words “Bomb Inside Aircraft” were found written on the mirror of an aircraft’s washroom. Police conducted a search but found nothing suspicious.
Source: Aajkaal
