Captain Devi Sharan, pilot of hijacked IC 814, retires after 40-year career

Captain Devi Sharan's final flight as a pilot was on January 4, operating a Dreamliner from Melbourne to Delhi, where his crew gave him a heartfelt farewell.

Captain Devi Sharan, the pilot who steered the hijacked Indian Airlines IC 814 flight in 1999, retired on Saturday after commanding his final flight aboard a Melbourne-Delhi Boeing 787.

Air India cabin crew celebrates Captain Devi Sharan's retirement on board the Boeing 787 after the Melbourne-Delhi flight. (X-@ShujaUH)

With a career that began in 1985 with Indian Airlines, the experienced pilot retired after 40 years in the cockpit, leaving behind both memorable and challenging experiences.

“IC 814 hijacking taught me life is very unpredictable and one has to be always ready to fight back. Those were the toughest days of my life and my only aim was to save lives of everyone on that aircraft. I hope and pray no crew member, passenger or anyone else ever relives those moments,” Sharan told Times of India.

He said that even as a passenger, he would always be observing those around him to ensure everything was alright, with a lingering sense of doubt, a reminder of the trauma from his past experiences.

Indian Airlines IC-814 aircraft by five terrorists, which happened just 40 minutes after the plane took off from Kathmandu.

Read: 'Seems nothing has changed..': Captain Devi Sharan remembers 1999's Kandahar hijack

The Kandahar hijacking wasn't Captain Devi Sharan's only encounter with danger. In 2000, he, along with Captain S P Suri and cabin crew, was stranded in Libya amid civil war, where they were stopped by armed youths carrying AK-47s on the streets, the report added.

Captain Sharan’s aviation journey began with flying training in Karnal in 1984, followed by his selection by Indian Airlines (which later merged with Air India in 2007) the next year.

He initially flew the Boeing 737-200 before progressing to the Airbus A320 and A330, the latter of which was involved in the hijacking to Kandahar. After the merger, he continued to operate the A330 and later the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

His final flight as a pilot was on January 4, operating a Dreamliner from Melbourne to Delhi, where his crew gave him a heartfelt farewell.