Was it hijacking?

[Patriot]

DOES a hijacker have to be on the aeroplane to conduct a hijacking? …… not necessarily!

On that fateful flight (Pk 805, Colombo-Male-Karachi, Oct 12, 1999) everything was perfect. The captain was flying along merrily. In a few minutes, he would be landing at Karachi. Boom! Came the voice of the air traffic controller: “You are not permitted to land at any airport in Pakistan……”

The captain was stunned. He was carrying the minimum legally required fuel, just enough to fly from Karachi to Nawabshah, the nearest ‘alternative airport’ (100 miles), plus a nominal amount as ‘contingency’ and ‘holding’ fuel. Outside Pakistan, he might just about make it to Ahmadabad in India on a wing and a prayer, almost 200 miles away. No other airport was within reach.

The captain pleaded for permission to land due to ‘low fuel’. Wing Commander Farooq of the Civil Aviation Department (Dawn, Nov 21, 1999): “It is the order of the prime minister not to allow the plane to land anywhere in Pakistan”…… Why?

The runway at Karachi was blocked with fire-engines and the lights were switched off. On board was the Chief of the Army Staff, the one man who had knowledge of our entire nuclear layout, every missile placement, the position of every submarine and fighter aircraft. He was also the most hated and wanted man by the Indians after the ‘Kargil’ affair and he was about to be presented to them on a platter.

Ahmadabad was not filed as an alternative airport. Permission to fly over Indian territory was mandatory. What possible excuse could the captain give for such a weird diversion? Clearance from Bombay radio on a cluttered H.F. frequency was a tedious proposition. In this dilemma, he had hardly any choice. Ahmadabad had to be ruled out.

Nawaz Sharif says that no crime was committed because any competent PIA officer could order the pilot to proceed to an alternative airport and, of course, he himself had the right to dismiss the Army Chief of Staff whenever he pleased (Dawn, Feb 5, 2009): ‘PML (N) plans global judicial council’.

Interfering with the operation of a scheduled international flight in the air and sabotaging its landing runway is a crime. Also, the captain and only the captain decides to divert the flight to an alternative airport, keeping in mind the well

- being of his passengers and a hundred other factors, including ‘fuel’. There is no provision for taking orders.

Of course, no one can deny the right of the prime minister to dismiss the Army Chief at his pleasure. But why was the aircraft stopped from landing at any airport in Pakistan?

A lot of dangerous ‘to-ing’ and ‘fro-ing’ between Nawabshah and Karachi went on: “Yes you can land”, “no you can’t”. With the fear of hitting an obstacle on the runway and risk cart-wheeling on the edges, killing everyone, he was on tenterhooks to put the aircraft down somehow. His eyes were glued to the fuel gauges. The orders of the prime minister or the general meant little to him. He took a sigh of relief when the runway began to be cleared. He landed with almost empty fuel tanks.

A hijacker with a gun behind a pilot’s neck forces him to fly to an unwanted destination. If Pk 805 had landed at Ahmadabad with Gen Musharraf on board, a successful hijacking would have been accomplished without a hijacker in the cockpit.

CAPT S. AFAQ RIZVI
Karachi

DAWN.COM | Letters to the Editor | Was-it-hijacking

 

[Awesome]

I completely agree, it was a hijacking. Its a charge of conspiracy to hijack on NS. However the people of Pakistan don't care. The mandate of Pakistanis would overwhelmingly choose Nawaz Sharif given the opportunity.

So its irrelevant. The only thing matters is whom would the majority of Pakistanis support.

 

[booo]

that was cruel.

 

[Zovc]

Well Nawaz Sharif has already been convicted with the Hijacking crime.

But the other side of the story:
Musharraf was removed from his post while on his visit to the US. While Musharraf was inflight he came to know about this action. Official authorities were waiting at the airport to detain and remove General from Musharraf. So when they reached Karachi airport, Musharraf told the Pilot not to land and start spinning the plane around the airport until he deems safe. That's when he started calling his loyalists and mobilizing them, when they took over the airport, and arrested the police available there to detain the General, that's when the pilot was told to land. And he successfully staged the coup.

This account was narrated to be by someone else linked with PML-N. I cannot take guarantee for it's authenticity.

 

[Bane Blade]

Isn't it beautiful Musharraf gets lauded on being a cool operator in India on monday this letter comes through rumours are Zardari is being warned by General Kayani.

Added the fact that Musharraf made the way for Zardari in the first place did he plan to make a return when he was actually in office if so he is the biggest game player out their.

Though I would agree with what Zovc says I don't think we will ever know the truth.

 

[Rafael]

Well Nawaz Sharif has already been convicted with the Hijacking crime.

But the other side of the story:
Musharraf was removed from his post while on his visit to the US. While Musharraf was inflight he came to know about this action. Official authorities were waiting at the airport to detain and remove General from Musharraf. So when they reached Karachi airport, Musharraf told the Pilot not to land and start spinning the plane around the airport until he deems safe. That's when he started calling his loyalists and mobilizing them, when they took over the airport, and arrested the police available there to detain the General, that's when the pilot was told to land. And he successfully staged the coup.

This account was narrated to be by someone else linked with PML-N. I cannot take guarantee for it's authenticity.

We dont know its true or not, neither we know the article is true...but all people of pakistan want to know is even IF NS had tried to hijack the plane and wanted to sent him to INDIA....can he justify what he did afterwards??? I mean NS hijacked the plane and after sending him to jail Musharaff became the president of the country, disbanded the national assembly and forced the supreme court to give him ligitimacy....even sent Justice wajihuddin home who refused to do so...

These questions need to be answered..

P.S To All musharaff fans---I am not trying to "Insult" him nor I mean to bash him once again---just need the answers!

 

[Awesome]

We dont know its true or not, neither we know the article is true...but all people of pakistan want to know is even IF NS had tried to hijack the plane and wanted to sent him to INDIA....can he justify what he did afterwards??? I mean NS hijacked the plane and after sending him to jail Musharaff became the president of the country, disbanded the national assembly and forced the supreme court to give him ligitimacy....even sent Justice wajihuddin home who refused to do so...

These questions need to be answered..

P.S To All musharaff fans---I am not trying to "Insult" him nor I mean to bash him once again---just need the answers!

It was done in national interest. Nawaz Sharif was raping the country dry. Raiwind's palaces tell the entire story. People CELEBRATED when NAwaz was kicked off. He had his own guy as CJ, his own guy as President, governors, CMs, even Musharraf was his guy after he got rid of Karamat.

But anyway, we're talking about events 10 years ago.

 

[Bane Blade]

It is true that the country was going to go dry at that time but we had a lot of prized assets that we could have sold but back then Nawaz didn't have the blessings of US which is necessary for survival, but had Nawaz remained we may have made real friends after the Blast and had a better future.

 

[BATMAN]

Well Nawaz Sharif has already been convicted with the Hijacking crime.

But the other side of the story:
Musharraf was removed from his post while on his visit to the US. While Musharraf was inflight he came to know about this action. Official authorities were waiting at the airport to detain and remove General from Musharraf. So when they reached Karachi airport, Musharraf told the Pilot not to land and start spinning the plane around the airport until he deems safe. That's when he started calling his loyalists and mobilizing them, when they took over the airport, and arrested the police available there to detain the General, that's when the pilot was told to land. And he successfully staged the coup.

This account was narrated to be by someone else linked with PML-N. I cannot take guarantee for it's authenticity.

Did Musharraf ordered the CAA to switch off the Karachi airport and block the runway with containers.
Did Musharraf ordered personal army of Sharif to go to wait at Nawab shah airport.
Who informed Musharraf in flight? and what was he informed that Pakistan have two army cheifs?