Hijacking Scare Sends Air Force, FBI Scrambling
POSTED: Saturday, May 13, 2006
UPDATED: 8:23 pm EDT May 14,
2006
 When air traffic controllers tried to reach the pilot, the response was a signal indicating that the Cessna had been hijacked, according to Local 6 News. |
SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. -- A small plane sending a message that it had been hijacked after violating Patrick Air Force Base airspace and flying near Walt Disney World caused members of the FBI, The Seminole County Sheriff's Office and Air Force to scramble to reach the aircraft Saturday, according to Local 6 News.Authorities said pilot Wayne Lukens violated Patrick Air Force Base airspace by flying less than one mile west of the facility.When air traffic controllers tried to reach Lukens as he flew over Seminole County, the response was a signal indicating that the Cessna had been hijacked, according to Local 6 News.A military helicopter and sheriff's plane followed as the it flew into Orange County, near Walt Disney World before landing at Orlando-Sanford International Airport. When the plane landed, members from the FBI, the Federal Aviation Administration and Seminole County sheriff's deputies took the pilot into custody.
"Yeah, (the pilot and passenger) seemed surprised," Seminole County Sheriff's Office chief pilot Steve Farris said. "They seemed like they were compliant and were like, 'Wow, what is all this about?' They said they thought they were squawking the normal code. So, it was either a mechanical problem or some type of mistake."The owner of the plane said the mistake was caused by a technical malfunction."We had an equipment malfunction on my aircraft," Falcon Flight School representative Matt Johnson said. "Seminole County Sheriff, the FBI and TSA, everybody had to get involved because they thought the plane was being hijacked."The Seminole County Sheriff's Office said the pilot was at fault because he dialed in an incorrect code that sent the message that the plane was being hijacked, Local 6 News reported.The FAA is conducting an investigation.Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.
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