New revelations from pilot who navigated IC 814 hijacking crisis
In a recent interview, Captain Devi Sharan, who was piloting the hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC 814 in 1999, shared alarming new details about the tense standoff at Amritsar airport. The pilot, played by actor Vijay Varma in the ongoing Netflix series on the hijacking, stated that a commando action to reclaim the plane at Amritsar could have cost the lives of up to 100 passengers.
Capt. Sharan recalled feeling immense fear and pressure as the flight with 180 people on board was taken over by Harkat-ul-Mujahideen terrorists soon after taking off from Kathmandu. With the plane low on fuel, it stopped briefly at Amritsar, but the hijackers refused to let passengers disembark and had already attacked two individuals, slicing their necks with knives.
As the veteran pilot explained, given the frenzied state of the hijackers and the close quarters inside the aircraft, any raids by special forces at that point could have proven deadly. “At least 70-80 or perhaps even 100 passengers may not have survived”, he warned, stressing that negotiations were the sole hope for a peaceful resolution without loss of innocent lives.
Under constant threat to his own safety as well, Capt. Sharan faced an agonizing decision but had no choice other than continuing the flight. After refueling in Amritsar, the aircraft was then diverted to Lahore and eventually landed in Kandahar, where the crisis continued for days as officials worked tirelessly to secure the passengers' freedom.
The pilot's unsettling revelations provide crucial insights into the very real dangers and difficult judgments calls faced during the crisis. As the series dramatizes these events, Capt. Sharan's reasoned perspective is a somber reminder of the human costs that could have resulted from the wrong response at a critical juncture.
