.jpg) HL7404, the Boeing 747-400 involved, seen in 2005 | |
| Occurrence | |
|---|---|
| Date | September 11, 2001 |
| Summary | Suspected hijacking, false alarm |
| Site | Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport, Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 747-4B5 |
| Operator | Korean Air |
| Registration | HL7404 |
| Flight origin | Incheon International Airport, Incheon, South Korea |
| Stopover | Anchorage International Airport, Anchorage, Alaska, United States |
| Destination | John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, New York, United States[1] |
| Passengers | 215 |
On September 11, 2001, Korean Air Flight 085 (originating from Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea) was en-route to Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage, Alaska, when information about the September 11 attacks was relayed to the crew. The pilot in command's ACARS message reply included the letters "HJK", a prompt interpreted as a distress signal indicating that the flight had been hijacked. When ordered to squawk 7500 (a "hijack" code), the pilot complied, despite miscommunication that implied he would disregard the instruction.[2][3]
Flight 085 was ordered to divert to Whitehorse International Airport in Canada's Yukon territory. U.S. officials and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien authorized the aircraft to be shot down if it did not cooperate.[4] The airliner pilots complied and the 747 landed safely in Whitehorse, with U.S. F-15 military jets escorting it. The suspected hijacking turned out to be a false alarm.
- ^ Alan Levin (2002-08-12). "Korean Air jet may have narrowly missed disaster". USA TODAY. ProQuest 408885622. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
- ^ "Second Controller Speaks About Korean Airliner Incident on 9/11". 2011-09-12. Retrieved 2015-11-07.
- ^ "Dick Cheney: Personal Reflections on his Public Life".
- ^ SHAWN MCCARTHY OTTAWA BUREAU CHIEF (September 12, 2002). "PM says U.S. attitude helped fuel Sept. 11". Bell Globemedia Interactive Inc. Archived from the original on February 3, 2003. Retrieved 2009-03-19.