Chaos at the Terminal: Travelers Share their Frightening Experiences
"Terrifying," "harrowing" - these are the sentiments expressed by passengers who were forced off their planes due to the hijacking situation at Hamburg Airport.
A young woman, who was en route to Mallorca on a Saturday evening, shared her story with the German Press Agency. Initially, she spotted a fire and believed it would be extinguished swiftly. However, she soon learned about a rampage that sent shivers down her spine.
Police reports confirm an armed individual broke through an airport gate with a vehicle around 8 PM. The individual fired into the air and tossed incendiary bottles from his car, igniting a fire on the tarmac. According to police, a four-year-old girl was in the car alongside the hostage-taker. The airport was closed over a large area, and all passengers were evacuated from their planes.
Another woman, bound for Mallorca like many others, described being allowed to keep only her handbag when they were cleared from the plane. She admitted the atmosphere was calm but the uncertainty was unnerving.
One passenger reported seeing the fire on the tarmac during boarding. Just two minutes before scheduled takeoff, a message sounded, "Please depart the aircraft calmly." Suddenly, the instructions shifted to "hurry up."
The sudden disruption of air traffic due to the hijacking created a sense of dread and discomfort among many passengers. Although the passengers remained collective and composed, the lack of information on the situation fueled an atmosphere of apprehension and uncertainty.
Enrichment Insight: While specific news articles or reports from that period may provide more detailed information about the incident, the search results do not offer any explicit details about the evacuation at Hamburg Airport due to an armed hostage-taking event.
