DHAKA, Feb 28, 2019 (BSS) – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today appreciated the “courage, intelligence and prudence” of a Biman aircraft pilots and crew which was exposed to a hijack threat on Feb 24.

“You’ve showed huge courage, intelligence and prudence,” she told the pilots and crew of the Biman aircraft that made an emergency landing in Chattagram Shah Amanat International Airport as one of the passengers emerged as a hijacker.

The premier called them “heroes” saying that they successfully thwarted the hijack bid of the BG-147 aircraft as the pilots and crew of the flight called on her at her Ganabhaban residence this evening.

“You’ve successfully tackled the situation with infinite courage causing no casualties and damage to the aircraft,” premier’s deputy press secretary Ashraful Alam Khokan quoted her as saying at a news briefing.

The Dubai-bound Boeing 737-800 aircraft made an emergency landing at the Chattogram airport at 5:41pm on Sunday after a youth named Polash Ahmed allegedly attempted to hijack the plane.

He was killed later in an eight-minute operation by military para-commandos.

Sheikh Hasina said she monitored the situation every minute during that episode and her biggest concern was the security of the passengers, pilots and crew.

“I issued directives for safe evacuation of all passengers, pilots and crews,” she said.

The prime minister particularly appreciated the temperament of the pilots and crew for their temperament during that episode saying their plan to upset the hijack attempt was “extraordinary’ keeping their head cool.

Sheikh Hasina also noted that most such hijack attempts across the globe could not be thwarted so successfully and particularly “in the case of the hijack attempt, evacuating all from the plane safely is a rare incident”.

Captain of the flight Golam Shafi narrated the whole episode of the hijack attempt when his fellow co-pilot and crew kept passengers quite and calm, secured the cockpit and engaged the hijacker in talks and eventually ensured the passengers safe disembarkation.

“If the hijacker could have entered the cockpit, he might have taken the plane to other country tarnishing the image of Bangladesh (while) we always tried to give attention so that our image is not tainted in any way,” he said.

Shafi added: “We’ve foiled the hijack bid by utilizing our experiences and training successfully.”

First Officer Muntasir Mahbub and five crew members are Shafika Nasim, Hosne Ara, Sharifa Begum, Shaheduzzaman and Abdus Sakur Mojahid were present during the call on and thanked the prime minister for inviting them to Ganabhaban.

State Minister for Civil Aviation Mahbub Ali, Secretary of the ministry Mohibul Haque and Managing Director and CEO of Biman AM Mosaddek Ahmed were present on the occasion.

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