Hijacking at Stansted

Posted Monday 18th October 2021 16:56

 

The South Woodham Ferrers Rotary Club and several visitors were entertained by Mick Benning who was a senior Essex Police Officer. Stansted Airport which was the designated Airport which would receive any or all Aircraft which were hijacked.

A picture containing text, indoorDescription automatically generated He detailed the Command Structure which would be involved in the decision making, the organisation of police and others and the initial activity when any planes that had been hijacked were brought in and parked in the designated area.

The decision would have been made according to any information that had been received and may determine how to initially deal with the situation to ensure whatever method that was used was essential for the safety of the passengers and all others in the vicinity.

He covered the sort of intelligence which was needed to identify the hijackers, and which was to be used by the negotiators to ensure that the hijackers’ mission would not be successful.

Stansted has had a number of hijacked planes to deal with over the past years and all have ended with the surrender of the hijackers without injury or loss of life.

A domestic BA flight was hijacked 1975 between Manchester & Heathrow but it finished up at Stansted .It turned out that it was by one young man who when questioned just wanted to get to France to see his girl friend

1982 saw an Air Tanzania Boeing 737 hijacked eventually flown to Stansted

The international hijackings have included an Airbus 310 where 7 Iraqis hijacked a Sudanese Airbus and lastly was the Afghan Airliner which was hijacked to escape from Kabul.

Mick Benning’s audience of 28 found his presentation to be very entertaining  and well prepared by a talented speaker. A donation was made to Help for Heroes, Mick’s chosen charity.