Bodybuilder subdues crazed man trying to break into plane cockpit
- 7 years ago
ETHIOPIA — A Chinese man is being hailed as hero for stopping a lunatic from breaking into the cockpit of a plane that was flying to Beijing.
The incident took place on an Ethiopian Airlines flight travelling from Addis Ababa to Beijing last Saturday. It began when an unnamed passenger suddenly threw himself at the cockpit door and began pounding on it and kicking it, Chinese online news site The Paper reported.
The flight crew and passengers tried to reason with the man but were too scared to confront him. That’s when Cao Hongguo, a business manager and bodybuilder who was on a business trip, stepped in to save the day. Even though he had a fever, Cao wrestled the man to the floor. The pair struggled until the plane’s captain jumped in to help Cao.
The man had his arms tied behind his back but broke free, and Cao and the captain had to pin him down again. Cao collected headphones from passengers to tie the man up again, but the struggle still lasted for 20 minutes.
The flight made an emergency stop in Lahore, Pakistan, where the man was taken into custody. The plane later arrived in Beijing, five hours after its scheduled arrival time.
The Paper says the suspect was hysterical because he had lost his job. He wanted to end his life by taking a plane full of people with him.
Cao works for state-owned aerospace and defence company AVIC International. He sustained minor facial injuries in the fight. The captain wrote him a thank you letter for his help, which AVIC posted on Chinese social media platform Wechat.
In an interview with The Paper, commenting on his heroic act, Cao said anyone would have done the same thing. He also said he hopes people will quickly forget about him as he is not used to the publicity.
The incident took place on an Ethiopian Airlines flight travelling from Addis Ababa to Beijing last Saturday. It began when an unnamed passenger suddenly threw himself at the cockpit door and began pounding on it and kicking it, Chinese online news site The Paper reported.
The flight crew and passengers tried to reason with the man but were too scared to confront him. That’s when Cao Hongguo, a business manager and bodybuilder who was on a business trip, stepped in to save the day. Even though he had a fever, Cao wrestled the man to the floor. The pair struggled until the plane’s captain jumped in to help Cao.
The man had his arms tied behind his back but broke free, and Cao and the captain had to pin him down again. Cao collected headphones from passengers to tie the man up again, but the struggle still lasted for 20 minutes.
The flight made an emergency stop in Lahore, Pakistan, where the man was taken into custody. The plane later arrived in Beijing, five hours after its scheduled arrival time.
The Paper says the suspect was hysterical because he had lost his job. He wanted to end his life by taking a plane full of people with him.
Cao works for state-owned aerospace and defence company AVIC International. He sustained minor facial injuries in the fight. The captain wrote him a thank you letter for his help, which AVIC posted on Chinese social media platform Wechat.
In an interview with The Paper, commenting on his heroic act, Cao said anyone would have done the same thing. He also said he hopes people will quickly forget about him as he is not used to the publicity.