 An Aer Lingus 737-200, similar to the one that was hijacked | |
| Hijacking | |
|---|---|
| Date | 2 May 1981 |
| Summary | Hijacking |
| Site | London Heathrow Airport |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Boeing 737-200 |
| Operator | Aer Lingus |
| Flight origin | Dublin |
| Destination | London Heathrow |
| Passengers | 103 |
| Crew | 10 |
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Survivors | 113 |
Aer Lingus Flight 164 was a scheduled Boeing 737 passenger flight that was hijacked on 2 May 1981, en route from Dublin in Ireland to London Heathrow in England.
While on approach to Heathrow, about five minutes before the flight was due to land, a 55-year-old Australian named Laurence James Downey went into the toilet and doused himself in petrol.[1] He then went to the cockpit and demanded that the plane continue on to Le Touquet – Côte d'Opale Airport in France, and refuel there for a flight to Tehran, Iran.[2][3] Upon landing at Le Touquet, Downey further demanded the publication in the Irish press of a nine-page statement which he had the captain throw from the cockpit window.[4]
After an eight-hour standoff (during which time Downey released 11 of his 112 hostages),[5] French special forces stormed the plane and apprehended Downey. No shots were fired and nobody was injured.[6] It was later found out that Downey was being sought by police in Perth, Australia, in connection with a $70,000 land fraud incident,[7] and was also wanted in Shannon, Ireland, for alleged assault.[6] He was sentenced in February 1983, in Saint-Omer, France, to five years' imprisonment for air piracy.[8]
In his statement, Downey claimed to have been a Trappist monk in residence at Tre Fontane Abbey in the 1950s (this was later confirmed by monastery officials),[2] before he was expelled from the order for punching a superior in the face.[3] He then took a job as a tour guide in central Portugal, at a shrine devoted to Our Lady of Fátima (who , many decades previous, had reportedly appeared before three children and shared with them what was to become known as the three secrets of Fatima).[2] At the time of the hijacking, the third secret was known only to the Pope and other senior figures in the Catholic Church; Downey's statement called on the Vatican to release this secret to the public.[3]