China: Using fountain pen, passenger holds attendant hostage mid-air
In a bizarre incident, a passenger used a fountain pen as a weapon to hold a flight attendant hostage on Air China's Beijing-bound flight today. The aircraft took off from Changsha, the capital of southern Hunan province, at 8:40 a.m. But its scheduled arrival at Beijing Airport at 11 AM was hindered due to a detour to Zhengzhou. Passengers and crew were unharmed.
The Civil Aviation Administration of China in a statement on the website revealed about the incident, though it did not reveal the name or motive of the male passenger. The unscheduled landing was done for public safety reasons, said the statement. The Zhengzhou airport activated emergency measures. All the passengers were disembarked safely. Another aircraft to fly them to the destination was arranged.
The curtains separating economy and businesses class stopped passengers from seeing exactly what was happening in the aircraft. However, a passenger said she saw police cars, ambulance and fire engines parked outside the plane as she peeped through the window. State broadcaster China Central Television showed paramilitary force in action outside a Zhengzhou airport hotel. Many ambulances were parked outside the hotel.
