United Airlines Flight 696

United Airlines Flight 696
Hijack summary
Date	March 13, 1978
Summary	Aircraft hijacking
Site	Memphis, Denver, USA
Injuries (non-fatal)	3 crew members
Survivors	All 75
Aircraft type	Boeing 727
Operator	United Airlines
Flight origin	San Francisco International Airport, CA
1st stopover	Oakland, CA
Last stopover	Denver, CO.
Destination	Seattle/Tacoma International Airport, WA

United Airlines Flight 696 was a flight between San Francisco International Airport and Seattle. After take off at San Francisco, Clay Thomas hijacked the flight, demanding the plane land in Oakland and fuel up for a flight to Cuba. The crew negotiated the release of all passengers and cabin crew while on the ground in Oakland waiting for fuel. During fueling, Thomas, panicked by the sight of multiple police vehicles, cut fueling short and demanded an immediate departure to Cuba. Once airborne, the pilot explained that the aircraft still did not have enough fuel to reach Cuba, and Thomas agreed to land in Denver for more fuel. About 90 minutes after landing, the cockpit crew jumped to safety from the open cockpit windows. All 3 crew were injured by the 18 foot jump. Within 5 minutes of the escape and without hostages, Thomas meekly surrendered to the FBI.^[1] Thomas is currently incarcerated in a mental Institution in Colorado.

References

↑ "ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 727-222 registration unknown Memphis, Denver". Aviation Safety Network.

← 1977
Aviation accidents and incidents in 1978 (1978)
1979 →

Jan 1 Air India Flight 855
Feb 11 Pacific Western Airlines Flight 314
Feb 17 British Army Gazelle downing
Mar 1 Continental Airlines Flight 603
Mar 3 LAV HS 748 accident
Mar 13 United Airlines Flight 696
Mar 16 Balkan Bulgarian Tu-134 crash
Apr 20 Korean Air Lines Flight 902
May 8 National Airlines Flight 193
Jun 21 Iranian Chinook shootdown
Jun 26 Air Canada Flight 189
Jun 26 Helikopter Service Flight 165
Aug 30 LOT Flight 165 hijacking
Sep 3 Air Rhodesia Flight 825
Sep 25 PSA Flight 182
Sep 30 Finnair Flight 405
Oct 3 Finnish Air Force DC-3 crash
Oct 21 Valentich disappearance
Nov 15 Icelandic Airlines Flight 001
Dec 21 TWA Flight 541
Dec 22 Cessna 188 Pacific rescue
Dec 23 Alitalia Flight 4128
Dec 28 United Airlines Flight 173

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