Live: ET B763ER holding over GVA, hijack

[Flanker2]

05:45 An ET B763ER is holding over GVA, currently 2 hours past its landing time... fuel on board is becoming an issue.
Hi-jackers will not allow to land until the Swiss authorities authorise a request... the nature of the request is unknown. Update: asyllum request.
Given the fast and calm answers from the pilots, it's unclear whether the request is from (one of) them or from someone else who is outside the cockpit and threatening someone else's life.

Callsign: KK001
Squawk: 7500

05:50 ATC advised to position for an approach, vectors to ILS
05:52 cleared for short downwind
05:53 KK01 is requesting info about an asyllum request, ATC says no response yet
05:54 ATC gave vectors for base turn
05:55 ATC gave vectors for localiser intercept, instructed to descend to 6000
05:55 Pilots ascerted the vectors, denied the descent, will maintain 7000, requested update on asyllum request
05:55 ATC on the phone with negotiator, trying to get an answer regarding the asyllum request
05:56 ATC said they are close to getting a response "on a good way", asked whether they would be ok to descend and give the answer on short final, reminded he's not the one who decides and is sorry for that.
05:57 KK01 acknowledged
05:58 ATC cleared ILS approach, asked whether he would want to do a 360, 7 miles final
05:59 Clears KK01 to land, response on the request expected on short final
06:00 Air Force jet request overflight of the field
06:01 ATC to military (PW): aircraft is on the ground. To KK01: taxi to the end of the runway.
06:03 ATC: You may hold this position. KK01: Pilot coming out from window.
06:04 PW requests a climb to leave the airspace. ATC responds, sounds busy.
06:15 Other pilots asking what all the lights are about, ATC responded that there is an ongoing situation.
06:17 Airliners.net reporting a single engine flame-out on approach... I'm not sure I heard that on the coms.
06:18 ATC advised to another pilot that the airport is closed and to expect delays
Radar information: http://www.flightradar24.com/ETH702/2ba40ab
06:30 ATC advised an aircraft that they hoped to open the airport at 07:00 but isn't sure.
06:32 EY53 which had an ETA into GVA at 06:44 made a 270 turn over Milan and is now South of it, descending.... probably going for a diversion into MXP.
06:38 EY53 now at 5000ft west of Milan, so it looks like it's indeed going into MXP.
06:42 UA974 IAD-GVA seems to be heading for MXP as well. Now passing South of GVA and LYS.
06:45 ATC informed on an aircraft's request that the time of reopning of the airport remains uncertain.
06:47 UA148 from EWR is flying racetracks northwest of GVA, UA974 is now just south of GVA at FL300.
06:55 UA974 seems to be positioning for a ZRH diversion.
07:02 Airport closure extended to 07:00 UTC as per communication between ATC and a pilot
07:03 UA148 seems to be positionning for a MXP diversion
Al Jazeera has picked up the news, as have RT News

[cathay belgium]

Plane on route to FCO landed in GVA,GVA airport closed! Following cnn..

[Flanker2]

When listening at the archives, it's clear that a military jet was following the involved aircraft from before it started doing its racetracks over GVA all the way to landing. It communicated with GVA at 04:20Z to ask the GVA ILS frequency and other info.
At 04:29Z KK001 reported 35 minutes of fuel remaining.
At 04:47Z KK001 did report an engine flame-out to ATC, to which ATC asked whether they need vectors for an ILS approach.

[Flanker2]

CNN:
A hijacker who redirected an Ethiopian Airlines plane to Geneva has been arrested, and all on board are safe, say police.

GVA seems to be returning to normal operations, first taxi instructions are being issued.
All seems to have ended well, without casualties.

[turbopilot]

Thank you Flanker for that really nice almost live report !

A flame out during holding ... they could have ended in the lac Leman just like in the famous Hudson incident !

Christian

[tolipanebas]

Thank you Flanker for that really nice almost live report !

A flame out during holding ... they could have ended in the lac Leman just like in the famous Hudson incident !

Christian

Forget the Hudson, ET has already had a much more similar and equally spectacular event happening to one of their other 767s after a hijacking, a couple of years ago...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zA5FMFVbVZ0

The odds of this happening twice to the same company are slim, but they came pretty close tonight!

[Bralo20]

According to the latest information it was the co-pilot which hijacked the plane.

[Malaysia]

Co pilot escaped by a rope from the cockpit, surrended and arrested.

[Passenger]

According to the latest information it was the co-pilot which hijacked the plane.

Aviation Herald confirms:
http://avherald.com/h?article=4702190a&opt=0

[teddybAIR]

This illustrates exactly what I have been saying about the locked cockpit door concept since the beginning when it was introduced after 9/11. Contrary to the general fail safe philosofy in aviation, a lockable cockpit door is a system on board an aircraft that allows the failure of one single component to doom an entire flight. In this case, it was - more or less fortunately - somebody with the intention to hijack, but there are other possible scenario's that could have far worse outcomes when a door is locked with a single crew member inside...eg: pilot incapacitation.

I'm not flying for an airline, but I would imagine that an airline would require someone from the cabin crew to be present in the cockpit during the period that one of the two cockpit crew members is not at their station. The reason is not to steer the aircraft, but rather to make sure the cockpit door can be opened at any moment.

[appel]

There is a fail safe system on the door, the numpad for which the entire crew knows the code.

In our company one of the cabin crew comes inside the flightdeck when one of the pilots needs to go to the toilet (unless we have someone on the jumpseat)
So an incident like the Transavia a few months ago (FO fell asleep when Capt was to toilet) won't happen with us

[b720]

I just hope that the SWISS authorities will send this criminal back to Ethiopia and NOT grant him political asylum.

[airazurxtror]

I just hope that the SWISS authorities will send this criminal back to Ethiopia

When out of the jail (condemnation possibly up to 20 years for taking hostages).

http://www.lalibre.be/actu/internationa ... 6bb1ceaf70

[Passenger]

Few weeks ago, the captain of a LAM (Mozambique) waited till his co-pilot left him alone in the cockpit (also for a toilet break) to lock himself in the cockpit. He didn't asked for asylum in Switserland though, but crashed the brand new E195 in nearby Botswana, killing the 30 passengers and crew.

Armed cockpit doors...

[Inquirer]

Well have you ever: crew hijacking their own plane!
That's an airline I woudn't want to be flying, for sure!

[cnc]

its not the first time and i doubt it will be the last time.
i can understand some people lose their sanity in this world

[sean1982]

Few weeks ago, the captain of a LAM (Mozambique) waited till his co-pilot left him alone in the cockpit (also for a toilet break) to lock himself in the cockpit. He didn't asked for asylum in Switserland though, but crashed the brand new E195 in nearby Botswana, killing the 30 passengers and crew.

Armed cockpit doors...

Let's not blame the door for this ... They are absolutely nessecary in todays world (or is 09/11 that far away?).
There are very simple SOP's to prevent this. Or the airline didnt have them or they werent followed.

[FlightMate]

Well, if the Capt or the FO wants to crash the plane, what can you do?
Reinforced door or not...

They could just knock the other guy out, or fly inverted at 100 ft on final...

[crew1990]

To me a pilot shouldn't never be left alone in the flight deck. When a pilot want to go to the toilet or something, a cabin crew member should take his place in the flight deck. We wouldn t have such thing like pilot suicide and so on.

[FlightMate]

Really? Like I say, all it would take is for the suicidal pilot to knock the other pilot (or flight attendant) out.

The best way to avoid that is to conduct frequent psychological/emotional checks.