Co-pilot who hijacked his own plane arrested in Geneva

The Ethiopian Airline co-pilot flew the Rome-bound plane to Geneva where he is now seeking asylum.

15:12 17 February 2014

An Ethiopian Airlines co-pilot has hijacked his own plane, a Boeing 767, when the pilot went to the toilet.

Flight ET702 had taken off from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa with 202 passengers and crew on board and was supposed to go to Rome. The co-pilot landed the aircraft in the Swiss City at about 5am. He immediately surrendered to police and asked for asylum in Switzerland.

Police spokesman Pierre Grangean said: "Just after landing, the co-pilot came out of the cockpit and ran to the police and said, 'I'm the hijacker.' He said he is not safe in his own country and wants asylum."

Meanwhile, Robert Deillon, chief executive of Geneva airport, said: "So this co-pilot put in the code for 'I just hijacked the aircraft'. As the plane was over Italy at the time, two Italian Eurofighters were scrambled to accompany it."

Sky's Harriet Hadfield, in Geneva, confirmed that passengers had to wait for the airport to be opened before they were allowed to disembark.

As to why the co-pilot hijacked his own plane, Human Rights Watch says that Ethiopia’s human right record “has sharply deteriorated” over the years.