Incident Overview
Description
A Saudi Arabian Boeing 737 aircraft with 76 passengers and 21 crew members aboard was hijacked by a lone male armed with a hand grenade. The aircraft was en route from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to Kuwait via Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The hijacker commandeered the aircraft just prior to landing in Riyadh and demanded to be taken to another destination. The pilot told the hijacker that the aircraft would have to refuel in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia before it could continue. While in Dhahran, the hijacker released everyone except the pilot and co-pilot. When the hijacker refused to surrender to Saudi Arabian security officials, the aircraft was stormed and, after throwing the grenade, he was shot and killed. There were no other casualties and damage to the aircraft was reported as slight.
Primary Cause
Hijacking of an aircraft by a lone male armed with a hand grenade.Hijacking of an aircraft by a lone male armed with a hand grenade.Share on:
