A peaceful Caribbean air journey was suddenly transformed into a heart-stopping life-and-death struggle.
At 8 a.m. local time on Thursday morning, a Tropic Air plane carrying 14 passengers took off from Corozal Airport in northern Belize with Ambergris Caye, a famous tourist destination, as its intended destination.
However, shortly after takeoff, U.S. veteran Akinyela Taylor suddenly pulled out a concealed knife and attempted to hijack the plane, stabbing three passengers aboard!
Luckily, thanks to the pilot's calm operation and the heroic resistance of the passengers, the plane landed safely, and Taylor was killed.
Witnesses described how the small Cessna aircraft began to plummet sharply shortly after takeoff, even descending to just 500 feet above the ground at one point.
The passengers on board were thrown into panic; some suffered head injuries with bleeding, and an atmosphere of fear enveloped the entire cabin. Taylor threatened the pilot, demanding that the plane leave Belize and change its original flight route to fly abroad, while stabbing passengers on board.
In the critical moment, pilot Howell Grange remained calm and tried to pacify the hijacker. He circled near the Belize airspace for nearly two hours, informing the ground tower that fuel was running out and had to make an emergency landing at Philip Goldson International Airport in Belize City.
However, when the plane approached the runway and the police prepared to carry out the encirclement, Taylor once again threatened the pilot to go around, and the situation became uncontrollable again.
At this critical moment, a passenger stepped forward. Local restaurant owner and 60-year-old Fitzgerald Brown, despite being stabbed himself, decisively fired his legally carried gun at Taylor's chest with a shot, causing him to fall to the ground instantly and preventing the situation from worsening further.
The plane landed safely before running out of fuel, and all passengers and crew members on board finally escaped danger.
After the incident, the police quickly entered the plane and found Taylor bleeding profusely from the chest. Although he was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, he was pronounced dead upon arrival. Unfortunately, this heroic passenger Brown also suffered severe injuries.
He sustained serious knife wounds to his back, with lung damage, and is currently receiving emergency treatment in the hospital, his condition critical.
Initial investigations by the police revealed that 49-year-old Taylor had previously attempted to enter Belize legally via the northern Mexican border but was not allowed, so he illegally entered the country.
His LinkedIn profile showed that he studied at Columbia College in St. Louis and then served in the 157th Air Combat Group in St. Louis. His recent residence was also in St. Louis.
After the incident became public, people were most concerned about how a knife and a gun could be successfully brought onto the plane. Chester Williams, head of the Belize Police Department, admitted that Corozal Airport, as a small local airport, did not have metal detectors, and there were serious omissions in the security check procedures.
Currently, the authorities have urgently initiated upgrades to the security screening procedures, planning to install X-ray scanning equipment and baggage inspection measures in all local airports across the country, aligning them with international airport security standards.
Maximillian Greif, CEO of Tropic Air, highly praised the brave performance of pilot Howell Grange after the incident: "Facing unimaginable immense pressure, Captain Grange demonstrated extraordinary courage and calmness, his excellent performance saved the lives of all passengers. He is a true hero. Currently, the company is fully assisting the injured passengers, and our hearts are with them."
Local residents expressed their admiration for the heroic actions of passenger Brown, considering him a real hero. "Without him, the outcome of this plane would have been unimaginable," said Chief of Police Williams at a press conference. "Although he is seriously injured now, we are praying for him, but there is no doubt that he saved everyone on board today."
If not for the bravery of the heroic passengers and the pilot, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7494752108781044224/
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