'The hijackers were very clever'
For a people in eternal quest of heroes, Captain Devi Sharan, the pilot of Indian Airlines Flight 814 is a god-send. Through the harrowing days when the Indian Airlines aircraft was taken over by the hijackers and taken around the region looking for a safe spot, it was Captain Sharan who kept things going -- both for the Indian government, as well as for the stricken passengers. On the Rediff Chat, the kind of personality he possessed -- optimistic, cheerful and straight -- came through abundantly.
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:40 IST)
Good evening, everybody on the Net. I am Capt Sharan here. You can ask me any question about the hijacking. Thank you.
pratish (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:30 IST)
Were the hijackers really courteous, or are some of the passengers suffering from Stockholm Syndrome?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:42 IST)
Pratish: They were courteous, and diplomatic also.
Indian (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:39 IST)
Hi Capt Devi, you must have heard of the Egypt Air disaster near NY, would you have considered something like that to teach a lesson to those hijackers??
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:44 IST)
Indian: I never considered that. I was always thinking about this hijacking and that we have to find some solution for this, so that the passengers can be saved.
lara (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:44 IST)
Capt, is you wife OK?? She's a real superwoman... really very brave
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:46 IST)
Lara: She is absolutely fine. And she is more brave now, and more confident. Adds Mrs Sharan: I am more confident now.
nisha (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:46 IST)
Capt, did you see their faces!?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:47 IST)
Nisha: I never saw their faces. They were always wearing monkey caps. They never showed their faces.
Eric Ashok (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:46 IST)
Dear Captain Sharan, I was following the whole story from Switzerland right from the moment it happened. Luckily you were freed in the last minute of 1999. How did you spend your millennium eve? Secondly: Do think what the Indian government did was correct, or would you rather wanted that the discussions should go on?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:49 IST)
Eric Ashok: I spent my millennium eve dancing and partying till 4 in the morning. And I was really happy, this was double millennium for me. And whatever the government did, it was the government's decision, not mine. To save one innocent in India, three murders can be freed. And we were 160 people.
pam (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:47 IST)
Have you seen the movie Die Hard-II or the movie in which Harrison Ford plays the President of USA, and the flight he is on is hijacked? Did you ever get the idea to confront the hijackers?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:51 IST)
pam: No, the situation was very different. The movie had a lot of security personnel, we had none on our flight.
amlesh (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:49 IST)
Captain, when asked in an interview about lax security, you criticised Tribhuvan airport but kept quiet about your employers. The fact of the matter is, Indian Airlines is guilty of criminal neglect. Isn't it time we Indians started speaking the truth, not worrying about who thinks what? You are a national hero now, IA can't touch you even if you criticise them publicly.
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:52 IST)
Amlesh: The security of any airport is the responsibility of that airport management. We don't have any security personnel there. It was the Kathmandu authorities' prerogative. Where does Indian Airlines come into the picture here?
AK (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:50 IST)
Capt, we can understand your inability to reveal all. But surely, you must share your ordeal with us -- what did you feel when you came to know that the plane had been hijacked?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:52 IST)
AK: At first I thought it was a joke being played on Christmas Eve, by someone wearing a monkey cap.
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:53 IST)
AK: To carry forward the last post: But immediately after seeing the armed men I realised it was a serious matter. My first concern was the safety of my passengers.
anuja (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:48 IST)
They say one of the hijackers, code name Burger, was Mr Nice to everyone on board. Is that true??
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:53 IST)
Anuja: No, he was very diplomatic. Whenever he wanted to enjoy, he used to let everyone enjoy. Whenever he meant business, he was serious with all.
Bharathbr (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:53 IST)
Capt, what was the govt's response when the CIA told them that such an incident might take place?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:55 IST)
Bharathbr: I don't know about any such thing.
jap (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:52 IST)
Hi Captain, I was wondering if these hijacker types really have a great knowledge of aerial-geography. How do you think they can match an experienced pilot's knowledge of air-routes and such things....?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:57 IST)
Jap: They didn't have any kind of knowledge about routes. But they were very clever, whenever we used to land at any airport, they used to check whether it was the same airport or not by the number plate of some vehicle, or other means. So making fools of them was not that easy, and not good for the safety of passengers.
nisha (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:53 IST)
After three long days did you lose hope from the Indian govt?!!?
nisha (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:57 IST)
Capt, were you aware of Rupin Katyal being stabbed??
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:59 IST)
Nisha: I am not that kind of a person, that I ever lose hope. I am a very positive person, I always think there is a solution for everything. About Rupin Katyal, I was aware of his injury at Amritsar, and he died on the way to Dubai. I convinced hijackers to offload him at Lahore, so that he can be saved. But the Lahore authorities did not agree.
Deepak (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:59 IST)
Captain, I heard you were the interpreter in the negotiations between the hijackers and India, which sort of delayed the negotiations. Why were the hijackers not talking directly with the negotiators?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:0 IST)
Deepak: I was never the interpreter, I used to only check if negotiations are over, and when it will be over.
nomonster (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:59 IST)
Captain, it seems you ignored my question Tell us what happened at Amritsar
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:2 IST)
Nomonstor: At Amritsar, we landed for refuelling, but we never refuelled. They panicked, since they did not want to die on Indian territory, and said they will shoot me and the passengers as well. I then had no option but to take off. I had less fuel, and this was a calculated risk.
jap (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:1 IST)
Thanks for your reply. A colleague wishes to know if all those methods that the various 'experts' on TV channels spoke so much about -- like bursting the aircraft's tyres, commando operation etc -- could have worked. Or was surrendering the prisoners the only alternative?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:4 IST)
Jap: Sitting outside in your room, you can say anything. When you are in the commander's seat, you have to assess how much arms and ammunition they have. Then only can you act.
Bharathbr (Tue Jan 4 19100 5:55 IST)
Was the Taleban really helping the Indian government with the negotiations?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:5 IST)
Bharatbr: The Taleban were helping in the negotiations. It was the Taleban foreign minister who helped us at the final point, otherwise the negotiations were not going anywhere.
vasanthachary (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:5 IST)
Tell us where the body of Rupin Katyal was. Did you see him being stabbed?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:7 IST)
Vasanthchary: I did not see him being stabbed. It was confirmed to me by my flight engineer. His body was in the executive class, and later on it was off loaded in Dubai by the step ladder.
IndianRediff (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:7 IST)
Captain sir: Please forgive these people on chat. Their hostility is part of the problem of 'talking' in a medium that cannot let one emote well. One question comes to mind: Did the hijackers ever let you get up and mingle with the people, unescorted? Did the idea of trying to organise a revolt ever pass through your head?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:9 IST)
Indianrediff: They never had any doubts about me, that I was trying to engineer a revolt. I had in fact prepared a contingency plan, that if they kill anyone else, we will fight back. By the last day everybody knew how to open a door, open the chute and get out of the plane as fast as possible.
rajesh (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:6 IST)
Sir, do you think we lost out in this game?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:10 IST)
Rajesh: No, I don't think so. We have only gained, 160 people have been saved in this incident. That was the most important part.
ginny (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:10 IST)
Congratulations!! Not only to u captain, but your entire family as well. You sure are a lot of bold people!! I admire your wife and your children's confidence in you when u were away, I was amazed to see their patience & courage... Well done people!!
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:11 IST)
ginny: Thank you very much, I am thankful to you.
harshdeep (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:10 IST)
Sir, knowing the gravity of the situation do you think it was possible for the Indian government at any stage to 'storm and flush out'? If yes , then was it the Taleban that was trying to protect or trying to evade that kind of an eventuality?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:12 IST)
harshdeep: According to me, had they stormed the plane, the casualties would have been much much higher. And we would not have gained anything, because of the kind of arms and ammunition they had inside the aircraft.
Das (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:14 IST)
Captain, is it true that the hijackers displayed more arms after reaching Kandahar and were they in contact with someone outside?
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:18 IST)
Das: I don't have any proof of this. But they were really looking confident at Kandahar. I could see more bullets with them, and since I had never seen them together I could count the number of revolvers and pistols and hand grenades, because they were of the same make and same colour. I saw walkie-talkies with them, two in fact, but no satellite phone or cellphone.
harshdeep (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:17 IST)
But sir, the other day I was watching Star News with KPS Gill on it, he has the distinction of negotiating with and then successfully flushing out hijackers in ASR, and he was of the view that with the kind of ammunition these hijackers had on them it was quite possible to storm and flush. What I read in newspaper reports and also heard from one of our ministers on TV was that the hijackers were armed with things like revolvers and kitchen knifes. I am not very sure how true this was.
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:21 IST)
Harshdeep: When KPS Gill stormed the plane there was only one hijacker with ammunition on board. In this case, there were five people, and they had hand grenades, which can blow up the plane. And, storming the aeroplane in my view was not such a great idea, but anyway it would have been the government's decision. I would have agreed with them if they had taken such a decision.
Captain Devi Sharan (Tue Jan 4 19100 6:22 IST)
Everyone: Sorry I could not answer all your questions. Thank you very much, thanks for all the good wishes.
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