The hijacking of Southern Airways Flight 49 started on November 10, 1972 in
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
, stretching over 30 hours, three countries, and , not ending until the next evening in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. ,
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
.
[Eblen, Tom, ''Lexington's airport owes a lot to Charles Lindbergh'', Lexington Herald-Leader, August 4, 2010](_blank)
/ref> Three men, Melvin Cale, Louis Moore, and Henry D. Jackson Jr. successfully hijacked a Southern Airways
Southern Airways was a regional airline (known at the time as a "local-service air carrier" as designated by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) in the United States, from its founding by Frank Hulse in 1949 until 1979, when it merged with No ...
Douglas DC-9 that was scheduled to fly from Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
to Miami, Florida
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
via Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...
and Orlando, Florida
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
.[Time of Transition: The 70s, Our American Century, Time-Life Books, Alexandria, Virginia, p. 134-5] The three were each facing criminal charges for unrelated incidents.[ Thirty-four people, including thirty-one passengers and three crew members, were aboard the airplane when it was hijacked.][ The hijackers' threat to crash the aircraft into a nuclear reactor led directly to the requirement that U.S. airline passengers be physically screened, beginning January 5, 1973.][
]
Hijacking and ransom demands
Shortly after takeoff from Birmingham after 7:20 pm on Friday, November 10, 1972, en route to Montgomery on a series of scheduled stops in Alabama and Florida, the three hijackers brandished handguns and hand grenades and took over the aircraft, demanding a ransom of $10 million. The hijackers had the plane flown to multiple locations in the United States and Canada, including Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
; Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
, Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
; Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
; and Toronto, Ontario
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
; while the hijackers figured out their demands before finally arriving in Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
.[ At one point, the hijackers threatened to fly the plane into a nuclear research reactor, the ]High Flux Isotope Reactor
The High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) is a nuclear research reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, United States. Operating at 85 MW, HFIR is one of the highest flux reactor-based sources of neutrons for condense ...
at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is a U.S. multiprogram science and technology national laboratory sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and administered, managed, and operated by UT–Battelle as a federally funded research and ...
, if their demands for $10 million in cash were not met; one hijacker announced "I'm not playing. If you do not get that money together, I'm gonna crash this plane in Oak Ridge."[ While over ]Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of downtown Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 31,402 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Knoxville Metropolitan Area. Oak ...
, the hijackers negotiated with numerous officials, including FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
officials, who only managed to get between $2 million and $2.5 million of ransom money. The plane later landed at Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
's Lovell Field
Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (Lovell Field) is 5 miles (8 km) east of downtown Chattanooga, in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. The airport is owned and operated by the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority., effective O ...
inbound from Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...
's McGhee Tyson Airport
McGhee Tyson Airport is a public/military airport 12 miles south of Knoxville,. Federal Aviation Administration. effective November 15, 2012. in Alcoa, Blount County, Tennessee, United States. It is named for United States Navy pilot Charles Mc ...
to pick up the ransom. After picking up the less-than-demanded ransom money, the plane took off, bound for Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. .[ The hijackers passed out some of the ransom money to the passengers. Contrary to the hijackers' expectations, Cuban leader ]Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
did not accept them into that country; thus the hijackers had the airplane flown to Orlando, Florida
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
and discussed flying to Algeria
)
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, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
(which was not possible due to the airplane's limited range). This marked the first time a hijacked airplane had left Cuba with the hijackers on board. While stopped for refueling at the Orlando Jetport at McCoy, the civilian commercial air terminal at McCoy Air Force Base
McCoy AFB (1940–1947, 1951–1975) is a former U.S. Air Force installation located 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Orlando, Florida. It was a training base during World War II. From 1951 to 1975, it was a front line Strategic Air Command ...
, the joint civil-military airfield in Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...
, the FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
shot out two of the airplane's four main tires, prompting the hijackers to shoot co-pilot Harold Johnson in the arm and force pilot William Haas to take off.
Capture and aftermath
The hijacking finally came to an end when the plane landed once again in Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. on Saturday, the 11th, after traveling for some 30 hours and . Multiple sources alleged the runway was covered in foam at the time of the landing, a claim the plane’s co-pilot has denied. The hijackers were removed from the airplane at gunpoint by Cuban authorities and captured after attempting to escape. The hijackers served eight years in a Cuban prison before returning to the US to serve additional 20–25 year prison sentences. Cuba returned the airplane, crew, passengers, and ransom money to the United States.[ The incident led to a brief treaty between the U.S. and Cuba to extradite hijackers, which has not since been renewed.
The hijacking was the subject of the ]National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
''I Am Rebel'' documentary series premiere episode "Jacked" by Lana Wilson
Lana Wilson is an American filmmaker. She directed the feature documentaries ''After Tiller'', ''The Departure,'' and ''Miss Americana''. The first two films were nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary.
Life and career
Or ...
which aired June 5, 2016.
See also
*TWA Flight 106
Trans World Airlines Flight 106 was a scheduled passenger flight from Phoenix, Arizona to Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. On November 27, 1971, the Boeing 727 servicing the flight was hijacked by three armed and wanted men at Albuquerque I ...
*List of Cuba-United States aircraft hijackings
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
References
* ''Reader's Digest'' (1983). ''People In Peril and How They Survived. We're Taking Over This Plane and We're Not Gonna Have Any Heroes!''
* ''Nuclear Afternoon: True Stories of Atomic Disasters'' (2007) Chapter 5 "Skyjacking"
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Aircraft hijackings in the United States
Airliner accidents and incidents in the United States
Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1972
Cuba–United States relations
1972 in Cuba
Aircraft hijackings
Southern Airways accidents and incidents
November 1972 events in North America
Terrorist incidents in the United States in 1972
November 1972 events in the United States
Accidents and incidents involving the McDonnell Douglas DC-9