 A Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 720, similar to the one involved in the incident | |
| Hijacking | |
|---|---|
| Date | 3 December 1971 (1971-12-03) |
| Summary | Hijacking |
| Site |
|
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 720-040B |
| Aircraft name | City OfComilla |
| Operator | Pakistan International Airlines |
| IATA flight No. | PK712 |
| ICAO flight No. | PIA712 |
| Call sign | PAKISTAN 712 |
| Registration | AP-AMG |
| Flight origin | London |
| 1st stopover | Paris |
| 2nd stopover | Rome |
| 3rd stopover | Cairo |
| Destination | Karachi |
| Occupants | 28 |
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
| Survivors | 28 |
On 3 December 1971, Jean Eugene Paul Kay, a 28 year old French humanitarian activist,hijackedPakistan International Airlines Flight PK712 (aBoeing 720), atOrly Airport outsideParis,France.
The West GermanChancellor Willy Brandt and French PresidentGeorges Pompidou met one-on-one in Paris that same day. All of the security personnel were focused on ensuring the safety of these VIPs, including the West German chancellor and his entourage, who had just arrived at the airport. During this heightened security Jean Kay and his fellow hijackers managed to board the aircraft.[1]
The flight was bound fromLondon toKarachi viaParis,Rome andCairo. The pilots were about to take off for Rome when Kay gave them an order to turn off the engines at gunpoint. He yelled at the crew and pilots, threatening to blow up the aircraft if they disobeyed him.[1]
Kay immediately grabbed the captain's wireless set and connected to the airport control tower. He demanded for 20 tons of medical supplies to be loaded onto the plane and sent to the refugees ofBangladesh Liberation War sheltered inIndia, and threatened to blow up the aircraft if the demands were not met. After a standoff of seven hours, Kay was arrested by two police personnel who boarded the aircraft in the disguise of volunteers delivering the supplies he demanded.[2][3]
1971 et Kay, a 2023 English-language Bangladeshi film, is based on this event.
