Small plane 'hijacked' in Canada, Vancouver airport halts operations, grounds flights

After the ‘hijack’ alert, operations at the Vancouver airport, one of the busiest in the country, were briefly halted, and nine inbound flights were diverted.

Published on: Jul 16, 2025, 09:58:09 IST

By HT News Desk

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A small aircraft was reportedly "hijacked" from the Vancouver Island region in Canada and was heading toward the airspace over Vancouver International Airport, according to police on Wednesday.

Police received a report that a Cessna 172 "had been hijacked from the Vancouver Island area". (Pixabay/Representational)

In response to the alert, operations at the busy Vancouver airport were temporarily suspended, and nine incoming flights had to be diverted, AFP reported.

The plane that was "hijacked" was a Cessna 172, operated by a flying club in Victoria. The suspect was the only person aboard the plane and was taken into custody after the flight landed in Vancouver at 2:15 am IST on Wednesday.

According to Global News Canada, the halting of flight arrivals at the Vancouver airport lasted for 39 minutes.

According to a passenger's post online, police chased the plane as it landed, and the suspect who flew the plane appeared. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the "suspect was arrested without incident. "

Visuals viral online showed the suspect, surrounded by cops and standing with his hands in the air on the airport runway next to a Cessna plane.

Public broadcaster CBC shared an eyewitness account, describing the flight as "flying low in an airspace a small plane usually wouldn't be in".

"A few minutes later, we saw a second pass ... the plane was making a big clockwise circle," witness Paul Heeney was quoted as saying.

Flight operations have reportedly resumed at the airport, but there may still be some delays.

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HT News Desk
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