Ethiopian co-pilot hijacks plane to Geneva

Associated Press

GENEVA

It seemed like a routine overnight flight until the Ethiopian Airlines jetliner went into a dive and oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling. Only then did the terrified passengers — bound for Italy from Addis Ababa — realize something was terribly wrong.

The co-pilot had locked his captain from the cockpit, commandeered the plane and headed for Geneva, where he used a rope to lower himself out of a window, then asked for political asylum.

Authorities say a prison cell is more likely.

One passenger said the hijacker threatened to crash the plane if the pilot didn’t stop pounding on the locked door. Another said he was terrified “for hours” Monday as the plane careened across the sky.

The jetliner carrying 200 passengers and crew took off from the Ethiopian capital on a flight to Milan and then Rome, but sent a distress message over Sudan that it had been hijacked, an Ethiopian official said. Once the plane was over Europe, two Italian fighter jets and later French jets were scrambled to accompany it.

Italian Air Force Col. Girolamo Iadiciccio said the order to scramble came from NATO to ensure the plane didn’t harm national security and didn’t stray off-route.

The plane landed in Geneva about 6 a.m. Officials said no one on the flight was injured, and the hijacker was taken into custody after surrendering to Swiss police.