Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320
| Hijack | |
|---|---|
| Date | March 17, 1970 |
| Summary | Aircraft hijacking |
| Site | Boston-Logan International Airport, MA, USA |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | McDonnell Douglas DC-9-31 |
| Operator | Eastern Air Lines |
| Registration | N8925E |
| Flight origin | Newark Liberty International Airport, Newark NJ |
| Destination | Logan International Airport, Boston, MA |
| Passengers | 68 |
| Crew | 5 |
| Fatalities | 1 |
| Injuries | 2 |
| Survivors | 72 |
Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320, carrying passengers from Newark to Boston was hijacked around 7:30 P.M. on March 17, 1970 by John J. Divivo who was armed with a .38 caliber revolver.[1] Captain Robert Wilbur Jr., 35, a former Air Force pilot who had only been promoted to captain six months prior, was shot in his arm by the suicidal hijacker. Despite his wounds, he flew his aircraft safely to a landing while talking to the tower, telling them his copilot was shot (but not himself) and needed an ambulance. His copilot, First Officer James Hartley, 31, was shot without warning by Divivo and collapsed. Despite being mortally wounded Hartley recovered sufficiently to rip the gun from Divivo's hand, and shoot the would-be hijacker three times before lapsing into unconsciousness, and eventually death. Although wounded and slumped between the seats, Divivo arose and began clawing at Captain Wilbur, attempting to force a crash. Wilbur hit Divivo over the head with the gun he had retrieved from the center console.[2] The pilot was able to land the plane safely at Logan International Airport, and the hijacker was arrested immediately.[3] On November 1, 1970, DiVivo hanged himself while awaiting trial at Charles Street Jail.[4]
References
- ^ Hijacking description at the Aviation Safety Network
- ^ Tristani, Captain, Eastern Air Lines (ret), J.P. (March 30, 2009). "One heck of an in-air gunfight on a civilian jet". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Walker, Adrian (March 20, 2009). "Friends in high places". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
- ^ Eastern Airlines Hijacking at CelebrateBoston.com