Man tries to hijack Beijing-bound Air China flight with pen, forces plane to make emergency landing in Zhengzhou

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BEIJING: A Beijing-bound Air China flight on Sunday morning made an emergency landing after a man hijacked it with a pen. Air China flight CA1350 took off from Changsha, Central China's Hunan Province at 8:40 am (local time).

The aircraft made the emergency landing in Zhengzhou, the capital of central China's Henan Province. It was scheduled to arrive at Beijing Capital International Airport at abou11:00 am.

According to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), a man on board tried to hijack the flight with a pen. The man who is said to be mentally ill tried to hold a flight attendant hostage using a fountain pen as a weapon, forcing the flight to make an unscheduled landing.

The Air China Flight 1350 was diverted to Zhengzhou after the crew member was held hostage by the male passenger. The plane made the unscheduled landing at Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport, in central Henan province, at 9:58 am, according to Henan Airport Group.

"The incident was successfully dealt with at 1:17 p.M. And passengers and crew members are safe," the CAAC said.

A 41-year-old man from Anhua with a "history of mental illness" has been taken into custody over the incident, Shanghai-based online news outlet 'The Paper' quoted police as saying.

All passengers on board the flight were safely evacuated through the rear exit and the man was subdued after 1 pm, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
"Presently the airport is operating as normal," the Henan Province Airport Group said.

The CAAC, however, did not mention any further details behind the hijack. A Xinhua News Agency report suggests that the police and the local civil aviation administration are currently dealing with the issue.

As per CAAC, all of the passengers have been safely deboarded, Xinhua reported.

(With inputs from agencies)