Eagle Airways Flight 2279 - Misplaced Pages

(Redirected from Eagle Airways flight 2279) 2008 attempted aircraft hijacking

Eagle Airways Flight 2279
Hijacking
British Aerospace Jetstream 32EP ZK-ECN
Date	8 February 2008
Summary	Attempted hijacking
Site	Christchurch International Airport, Christchurch, New Zealand
Aircraft
Aircraft type	British Aerospace Jetstream
Aircraft name	City of Rotorua
Operator	Air National on behalf of Eagle Airways for Air New Zealand Link
Registration	ZK-ECN
Flight origin	Woodbourne Airport, Blenheim, New Zealand
Destination	Christchurch International Airport, Christchurch, New Zealand
Passengers	7 (including hijacker)
Crew	2
Fatalities	0
Injuries	3
Survivors	9

Eagle Airways Flight 2279 was a commuter flight operated by Air National on behalf of Eagle Airways, a regional carrier division of Air New Zealand Link. The flight was the subject of an unsuccessful hijack attempt on 8 February 2008 during which both pilots and a passenger suffered knife wounds.

Incident

Ten minutes after takeoff from Woodbourne Airport in Blenheim, at about 7:40 a.m. (NZDT), Asha Ali Abdille attacked both of the pilots and demanded the plane be flown to Australia. One pilot was cut in the arm, the other in the leg. Abdille also tried to wrestle the controls from the pilot. There were six other passengers (four New Zealanders, one Australian and one Indian) on board. One female passenger was also injured. The copilot managed to restrain Abdille eventually. Abdille also claimed to have two bombs on board, but no explosives were found. The plane landed safely at Christchurch International Airport at 8:06 a.m.

Hijacker

Asha Ali Abdille, a 33-year-old living in Blenheim, New Zealand, originally a refugee from Somalia, was arrested after the plane landed.

There were fears among the New Zealand Somali community that they would be branded terrorists. The government quickly stated "the government will not tolerate any racial or religious intolerance".

Abdille moved to New Zealand in 1994. TVNZ did an interview with her in 1996, during which she said she was not coping with New Zealand society, and would like to go back to Somalia.

On 1 March 2005, the then-Immigration Minister Paul Swain was questioned in Parliament regarding unrelated incidents whether he was confident that Abdille "is not a threat to the New Zealand community". The minister answered in the affirmative.

Trial

Abdille was charged with one count of attempted hijacking, one count of wounding one of the pilots with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and two counts of injuring with intent. She was remanded for a psychiatric report.

On 22 February 2008, Abdille was charged in the Christchurch District Court with a further 11 charges, including threatening to kill, possessing an offensive weapon, and taking a dangerous weapon onto an aircraft. At her trial in 2010 where she was represented by prominent human rights and criminal barrister Antony Shaw, Abdille pleaded guilty to the charge of attempting to hijack an aircraft, and was sentenced to 9 years in jail.

Impact

Christchurch International Airport was evacuated after the incident. Among those caught up were Transport Minister Annette King, Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven and the England Cricket Team. This incident prompted a review of aviation security in New Zealand. Released on 23 April 2009, it found domestic flights of fewer than 90 seats with unscreened passengers and carry-on baggage were a high-risk situation. As of 2022, there has been no change and domestic flights of fewer than 90 seats continue to be unscreened.

References

"Aircraft Photo of ZK-ECN". Retrieved 28 November 2023.
"Second pilot released from hospital after hijack attempt". Radio New Zealand. 10 February 2008. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2008.
^ "Captain thankful of co-pilot's skills during mid-air drama". Fairfax New Zealand. 9 February 2008. Archived from the original on 10 February 2008. Retrieved 10 February 2008.
"NZ hijacker 'known to police'". ABC News. 8 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
^ "Minister reassures Somali community". Scoop. 8 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
"Update: African woman held in NZ hijack". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
"Close Up on 8 February". Television New Zealand. 8 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
Hansard 1 March 2005
Hartevelt, John (9 February 2008). "Hijack accused to get psychiatric evaluation". Fairfax New Zealand. Archived from the original on 9 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
Abdille trial begins today, archived from the original on 28 September 2011, retrieved 28 June 2010
Martin van Beynen (14 July 2010). "Blenheim woman admits hijacking". The Press. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
"Plane hijacker jailed for nine years". Television New Zealand. 27 August 2010. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
"Pilots stabbed in New Zealand plane hijack attempt". Channel 4. 8 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
"Domestic flight prices may rise as security beefed up". The New Zealand Herald. 23 April 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2009.
"Tourist fears and 15 March 'front of mind' in airport security review". NZ Herald. NZME. 5 September 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2021.

External links

v t e Air New Zealand
Former subsidiaries	Air Nelson Ansett Transport Industries Eagle Airways Fiji Airways Mount Cook Airline Virgin Australia Holdings
Predecessor	TEAL
Fleet	ATR 72-600 Airbus A320-200 Airbus A320neo Airbus A321neo Boeing 777-300ER Boeing 787-9 Bombardier Q300
Hubs	Auckland Airport Christchurch Airport Wellington Airport
Incidents and accidents	Flight 441 (1963) L-188 crash (1965) DC-8 crash (1966) Flight 103 (1978) Flight 4374 (1979) Flight 901 (1979) Flight 24 (1987) Flight 2279 (2008) Flight 888T (2008)
Destinations

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in 2008 (2008)
Jan 4 Transaven Turbolet crashJan 12 Macedonian Armed Forces Mi-17 crashJan 17 British Airways Flight 38Jan 23 Polish Air Force C-295 crashFeb 8 Eagle Airways Flight 2279Feb 14 Belavia Flight 1834Feb 21 Santa Bárbara Airlines Flight 518Feb 23 Andersen Air Force Base B-2 accidentMar 30 Biggin Hill Cessna Citation crashApr 3 Blue Wing Airlines An-28 crashApr 11 Kata Air Transport Flight 007Apr 15 Hewa Bora Airways Flight 122May 25 Kalitta Air Flight 207May 26 Moskovia Airlines Flight 9675May 30 TACA Flight 390Jun 10 Sudan Airways Flight 109Jul 7 Centurion Air Cargo Flight 164Jul 21 Guam B-52 crashJul 25 Qantas Flight 30Jul 31 East Coast Jets Flight 81Aug 20 Spanair Flight 5022Aug 24 Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 6895Aug 24 Aéreo Ruta Maya crashAug 28 Sriwijaya Air Flight 062Aug 30 Conviasa Boeing 737 crashSep 14 Aeroflot Flight 821Sep 19 South Carolina Learjet 60 crashOct 7 Qantas Flight 72Oct 8 Yeti Airlines Flight 101Nov 4 Mexico City crashNov 10 Ryanair Flight 4102Nov 27 XL Airways Germany Flight 888TDec 8 San Diego F/A-18 crashDec 20 Continental Airlines Flight 1404
2007 ◄ ► 2009

Aviation accidents and incidents in 2008 (2008)

Jan 4 Transaven Turbolet crashJan 12 Macedonian Armed Forces Mi-17 crashJan 17 British Airways Flight 38Jan 23 Polish Air Force C-295 crashFeb 8 Eagle Airways Flight 2279Feb 14 Belavia Flight 1834Feb 21 Santa Bárbara Airlines Flight 518Feb 23 Andersen Air Force Base B-2 accidentMar 30 Biggin Hill Cessna Citation crashApr 3 Blue Wing Airlines An-28 crashApr 11 Kata Air Transport Flight 007Apr 15 Hewa Bora Airways Flight 122May 25 Kalitta Air Flight 207May 26 Moskovia Airlines Flight 9675May 30 TACA Flight 390Jun 10 Sudan Airways Flight 109Jul 7 Centurion Air Cargo Flight 164Jul 21 Guam B-52 crashJul 25 Qantas Flight 30Jul 31 East Coast Jets Flight 81Aug 20 Spanair Flight 5022Aug 24 Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 6895Aug 24 Aéreo Ruta Maya crashAug 28 Sriwijaya Air Flight 062Aug 30 Conviasa Boeing 737 crashSep 14 Aeroflot Flight 821Sep 19 South Carolina Learjet 60 crashOct 7 Qantas Flight 72Oct 8 Yeti Airlines Flight 101Nov 4 Mexico City crashNov 10 Ryanair Flight 4102Nov 27 XL Airways Germany Flight 888TDec 8 San Diego F/A-18 crashDec 20 Continental Airlines Flight 1404

2007 ◄ ► 2009

v t e Aviation accidents and incidents in New Zealand
Before 1960	Moncrieff and Hood disappearance (January 1928) Liberator crash at Whenuapai (August 1943)
1960s	New Zealand National Airways Corporation Flight 441 (July 1963) Air New Zealand DC-8 crash (July 1966)
1970s	Air New Zealand Flight 4374 (February 1979) Air New Zealand Flight 901 (November 1979)*
1990s	Auckland mid-air collision (November 1993) Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 (June 1995)
2000s	Airwork Flight 23 (May 2005) Eagle Airways Flight 2279 (February 2008)
2010s	Fox Glacier FU-24 crash (September 2010) Carterton hot air balloon crash (January 2012) Timona Park plane crash (January 2012) Fox Glacier helicopter crash (November 2015)
2020s	LATAM Airlines Flight 800 (March 2024)
Asterisks (*) denote an incident that took place in an associated state or dependent territory of New Zealand

v t e Terrorism in New Zealand
Notable attacks	Huntly rail bridge bombing (1951) Wanganui Computer Centre bombing (1982) Wellington Trades Hall bombing (1984) Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior (1985) Eagle Airways Flight 2279 (2008) Christchurch mosque shootings (2019) Auckland supermarket stabbing (2021)
Counter-terrorism	Terrorism Suppression Act 2002 Outlawed terror organisations 2007 New Zealand police raids

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