Air Vietnam Flight 706
Encyclopedia
Air Vietnam Flight 706 was a Boeing 727
which crashed on September 15, 1974 near Phan Rang Air Base
in South Vietnam. After taking off from Danang in South Vietnam
on a regularly scheduled flight for Saigon, the flight was hijacked
by a man holding two grenades. He demanded to be flown to Hanoi
in North Vietnam
. For unknown reasons the pilots approached the airfield at Phan Rang but aborted the landing. The aircraft overshot the base leg and initiated a left turn, during which the aircraft lost control. Shortly after that, the airplane plunged to the ground from an altitude of 1000 feet (304.8 m), killing all 75 people aboard. Even though the exact cause remains unclear, it has been speculated that the hijacker caused the crash by setting off his grenades after the pilots refused to give in to his demands.
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
which crashed on September 15, 1974 near Phan Rang Air Base
Phan Rang Air Base
Phan Rang Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force military airfield in Vietnam. It is located north-northwest of Phan Rang-Thap Cham in Ninh Thuan Province....
in South Vietnam. After taking off from Danang in South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
on a regularly scheduled flight for Saigon, the flight was hijacked
Aircraft hijacking
Aircraft hijacking is the unlawful seizure of an aircraft by an individual or a group. In most cases, the pilot is forced to fly according to the orders of the hijackers. Occasionally, however, the hijackers have flown the aircraft themselves, such as the September 11 attacks of 2001...
by a man holding two grenades. He demanded to be flown to Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
in North Vietnam
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
. For unknown reasons the pilots approached the airfield at Phan Rang but aborted the landing. The aircraft overshot the base leg and initiated a left turn, during which the aircraft lost control. Shortly after that, the airplane plunged to the ground from an altitude of 1000 feet (304.8 m), killing all 75 people aboard. Even though the exact cause remains unclear, it has been speculated that the hijacker caused the crash by setting off his grenades after the pilots refused to give in to his demands.