Captain and Passenger Save Flight from Ranchito to San Pedro Amidst  Mid-Air Chaos

One week ago, a hijacking shook the skies over Belize, forever altering domestic air travel rules. As we await the official updates, let’s dive back into that harrowing day. Captain Howell Grange and his fifteen passengers faced potential disaster, but thanks to the pilot’s grit, focus, and quick thinking, tragedy was averted. Here’s News Five’s Marion Ali with a gripping, play-by-play of the events that unfolded mid-air.

 

Marion Ali, Reporting

One week ago, a routine flight from Ranchito to San Pedro turned into a nightmare for fifteen passengers. Captain Howell Grange, with his thirteen years of flying experience, had to muster every bit of his skill to safely land the plane amidst chaos in the sky. Thanks to his expertise and the help of passenger Armin Burgos, disaster was averted. Today, we bring you a simulation of how the flight began and the dramatic turn of events that followed. This image captures the seating arrangements on the aircraft before the hijacker took control. To the right of the pilot sat his co-worker’s son, with the co-worker directly behind him. On the right side, one of the stabbing victims was seated next to the hijacker, who was by the window. For Captain Grange, it’s standard practice for co-workers to sit behind the pilot. Armin Burgos was seated near the rear of the aircraft.

 

Howell Grange, Pilot, Tropic Air

“I waited till everyone boarded the plane and I had a coworker’s son sitting right beside me, and then Mr. Francesco, whenever he flies daily – not daily, Monday to Friday, he works with us, he’s our HR manager – so he sits directly behind, and then you had Mr. Brown, right beside Mr. Francesco. Then you had the other guy who was the…”

 

Marion Ali

“Who, Mr Taylor?”

 

Howell Grange

“Yeah. Mr. Taylor, the hijacker.”

 

Just two minutes into the flight, forty-nine-year-old Akinyela Taylor sprang his hijacking plan into action, making it clear he meant business. Among the passengers that day was Armin Burgos, who witnessed the unfolding drama firsthand.

 

Armin Burgos, Passenger

“Like two, three minutes after when we were in the air, they, I heard a lady shouting, stop it, stop it, stop it. So I thought they were fighting. I didn’t. Think nothing. I didn’t feel no way and then I saw the pilot, they’d like to turn back and then he told the pilot, you’re not landing, you’re not turning back. And he said, he, then I got, I saw the guy, he said, everybody go to the back.”

 

Captain Grange heard a scuffle and turned to see Castaneda and Brown bleeding heavily from stab wounds inflicted by Taylor. Thinking quickly, Grange decided to pretend to comply with Taylor’s demands. He contacted air traffic control, relaying the situation in Spanish, and kept the plane mostly over water at varying altitudes to confuse Taylor into believing they were heading to a U.S. airport. Meanwhile, Burgos tried to console a traumatized child onboard. Grange’s psychological tactics played a crucial role in managing the hijacker.

 

Armin Burgos

“I would applaud the pilot is that he like played a little psychology on him because he said, not only you are frustrated, I am, I’m tired of people telling me things, what to do and so on. And, you know, because he burst out there, but I couldn’t really hear everything. And, and so then he said, I’m the same thing too.”

 

Captain Grange kept the plane over Belize, and with fuel running low after nearly two hours in the air, he began to approach PGIA for landing. That’s when Taylor realized they were still in Belize, sparking a heated argument. As Grange prepared to land, Taylor attacked him, trying to stab him in the eye and hitting him on the temple. When Grange finally brought the plane down and shut off the engine, Taylor launched a vicious assault, aiming for veins and arteries. At that critical moment, Brown, who had a licensed gun, shot Taylor twice, killing him. Burgos, in shock, witnessed the dramatic end to the hijacking.

 

Armin Burgos

“ I stayed in shock. I couldn’t talk, tell I was, my breath was short. I was all what I could recall. I asked for my belt and the police brought my belt. When I saw the guy on the floor. I don’t know how he got out, who took him out or what.”

 

The wounds that Grange suffered kept him hospitalized until Wednesday, when he spoke with us.

 

Marion Ali

“Ready to fly again?

 

Howell Grange

“Recovery let’s recover first. I have a little trouble walking still.”

 

Marion Ali

“How do you condition your mind now after recovery?”

 

Howell Grange

“It is gonna take time, but you gotta fight fire with fire. You gotta go back, gotta go back to work.”

 

What will be going through Grange’s mind when he finally returns to work?

 

Howell Grange

“Well, all the aircraft are the same thing. All aircraft we have are the same. Same aircraft, same equipment, same, same. So I guess once you get the hump in one, then all of them will be the same thing. I have to put myself in that position to find out, and I’ll get back slow. It’s gonna take a little bit of time, but I’ll get back there. Something I love, something I fight to get there a long time. So I gotta, I gotta be back.”

 

The government has remained silent since the hijacking incident, but News Five has learned that changes to air traffic regulations began immediately. These changes were reportedly discussed during a National Security Council meeting on the same Thursday as the hijacking. Another meeting is scheduled for Monday, with recommendations set to be forwarded to the Cabinet, which will be convened on Tuesday. Reporting for News Five, I’m Marion Ali.