Singapore Airlines Flight 117

Singapore Airlines Flight 117

The aircraft involved in the hijacking, photographed in 1999, 8 years after the incident
Hijacking
Date	26 to 27 March 1991
Summary	Aircraft hijacking
Site	Changi Airport, Singapore 1°21′33″N 103°59′22″E / 1.35917°N 103.98944°E / 1.35917; 103.98944Coordinates: 1°21′33″N 103°59′22″E / 1.35917°N 103.98944°E / 1.35917; 103.98944
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Airbus A310-324
Operator	Singapore Airlines
Registration	9V-STP
Flight origin	Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport
Destination	Changi Airport, Singapore
Passengers	114 (excluding hijackers)
Crew	11
Fatalities	4 (hijackers)
Injuries	2
Missing	none
Survivors	125 (all, excluding hijackers)

Singapore Airlines Flight 117 was a Singapore Airlines flight that was hijacked en route by four Pakistani terrorists on 26 March 1991.

The aircraft landed in Singapore. The hijackers, who claimed to be members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), demanded the release of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto's husband, Asif Ali Zardari (later elected President of Pakistan), as well as other PPP members from jail. As their demands were not being met, the hijackers threatened to begin killing hostages; before their deadline expired, commandos stormed the plane, killing the hijackers and freeing all hostages unhurt.^[1] This was the first and only hijacking involving a Singapore Airlines aircraft.^[2]

Timeline[]

Operation Thunderbolt
Date 27 March 1991 Location Changi Airport, Singapore Result Special Operations Force victory
Belligerents
Special Operations Force	pro-Pakistan Peoples Party hijackers
Commanders and leaders
Unknown	Shahid Hussain Soomro
Strength
20 SOF commandos	4 hijackers
Casualties and losses
None	4 killed
2 crew wounded

The plane, an Airbus A310 with registration 9V-STP,^[2] had taken off from Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 21:15 SST, with 114 passengers and 11 crew on board.^[3] The plane was hijacked in mid-air while en route to Singapore Changi Airport by four Pakistanis. The hijackers were armed with explosives and knives but no firearms.^[3] It landed safely at Changi Airport at 22:15, where a group of officials from the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, along with Singapore Airlines representatives and a negotiating team, were waiting.

The hijackers, who claimed to be members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), demanded the release of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto's husband, Asif Ali Zardari (later elected President of Pakistan), as well as other PPP members from jail. The hijackers also required the plane to be refuelled to fly to Australia. The next morning, 27 March, at 02:30, the hijackers pushed two stewards out of the aircraft, after the plane had been moved to the outer tarmac.

At 06:45, the hijackers gave a last 5-minute deadline, and issued a threat to kill one passenger every ten minutes if their demands were still not met. With three minutes to go, orders were given to initiate the assault: the Singapore Armed Forces Commando Formation (SAF CDO FN) stormed the plane in a 30-second sweep, killing all four hijackers with no injuries to hostages. The hijack leader had been shot five times in the chest, but was still alive. Then he attempted to stand and ignite his explosive but a commando shot him dead before he did so.^[4] The plane was completely secured by 06:50.^[5]

Aftermath[]

Singapore received international praise for its prompt action in handling the incident.^[6] Then Prime Minister of Singapore Goh Chok Tong commended all those involved in handling the ordeal and rescue mission for their swiftness and efficiency. Captain Stanley Lim, the pilot of the flight, and Superintendent Foo Kia Juah, chief police negotiator, were awarded the Public Service Star for their roles. The SAF Commando Formation members were awarded the Medal for Valour, and others in the negotiating team were given the President's Certificates of Commendation.^[7]

Singapore Airlines as of 15 July 2020 continues to operate the flight number 117 between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, using an Airbus A350-900 (Flight 117 used to operate A330-300 on this route) except on Saturdays and Sundays.^[8]

The aircraft[]

The hijacked aircraft had been delivered to Singapore Airlines on 22 November 1988. The hijacked plane continued to remain in daily service with Singapore Airlines after the incident for the next 10 years, until it was transferred to Spanish airline Air Plus Comet on 11 May 2001. The plane was painted all-white and re-registered from 9V-STP to EC-HVB. On 31 May 2003, it was retired from flying and was stored in the Mojave Air and Space Port in the United States. On 25 April 2005, the untitled A310 aircraft which was registered N443RR was broken up and scrapped on site at the Mojave Air and Space Port.^[9]

In 2010, the registration of the hijacked A310, 9V-STP, was then re-registered to an Airbus A330-300. In July 2015, the aircraft was withdrawn from use and returned to the lessor. The aircraft was later transferred to TransAsia Airways in October 2015, and registered as B-22103 until the aircraft returned to lessor again on 2016 at same month, after the airline suffered the financial crisis. The aircraft then was transferred to Hong Kong Airlines in August 2017, and registered as B-LHD until returned to lessor again in February 2020.^[10]

See also[]

• Air France Flight 8969 – similar incident and resolution in 1994
• Indian Airlines Flight 814 – similar incident in 1999

References[]

External links[]

• Lay Yuen, Tan (17 April 1999). "Hijacking of Singapore Airlines Flight SQ 117". Singapore: National Library Board. Archived from the original on 14 September 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
• "SQ Hijack Video (from Days of Disaster)". Singapore: Channel NewsAsia. January 2015. Archived from the original on 27 February 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.