HIJACKING OF TURKISH AIRCRAF TO SOCHI WAS FOILED

Turkish security forces on Friday detained a Ukrainian plane passenger suspected of making a bomb threat in an attempt to hijack a flight to Sochi, Russia, where the Winter Olympics were opening under tight security. 

An F-16 fighter was scrambled as soon as the pilot on the flight from Kharkiv, Ukraine, signalled there was a hijacking attempt and then escorted the plane safely to its original destination in Istanbul, according to NTV television. 

 Authorities snuck onto the plane and subdued the suspected hijacker while the other 109 passengers were being evacuated, Huseyin Avni Mutlu, the Istanbul governor, told reporters at Sabiha Gokcen airport. The man was slightly injured during the struggle, but no weapons were used, he said. The man did not have a bomb on him, he said.

Source: AF, CNN, Agencies