Tropic Air Flight 711

Tropic Air Flight 711

A Tropic Air Cessna 208 Grand Caravan similar to the aircraft involved
Hijacking
Date	17 April 2025 (2025-04-17)
Summary	Hijacking
Site	over Belize City
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX
Operator	Tropic Air
IATA flight No.	9N711
ICAO flight No.	TOS711
Call sign	TROPISER 711
Registration	V3-HIG
Flight origin	Corozal Airport, Belize
Destination	John Greif II Airport, Belize
Occupants	16 (including hijacker)
Passengers	14
Crew	2
Fatalities	1 (hijacker)
Injuries	3
Survivors	15

On 17 April 2025, a Tropic Air Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX, operating as Tropic Air Flight 711 was hijacked by a passenger armed with a knife while flying in between the Belizean towns of Corozal and San Pedro. The hijacker was shot dead by an armed passenger after the plane performed an emergency landing at Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport.

Background

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Cessna 208 Grand Caravan EX manufactured in 2018 operated by Belize airline Tropic Air. The aircraft was registered as V3-HIG.

Passengers and crew

On board the flight there were 14 passengers, including the hijacker, of which two were American nationals and a small child.

Hijacking

The flight was operating as Flight 9N711. At 08:17 CST (UTC−6), the aircraft took off from Corozal Airport headed to John Greif II Airport. Six minutes later, the aircraft began squawking 7700, indicating a general emergency. The plane made a sharp turn and began to circle over the Belizean coast. While over the Caribbean Sea, the aircraft requested that other aircraft in the area, including an helicopter of Astrum Helicopter Tours, keep track of it.

The aircraft flew over Belize City until it nearly ran out of fuel and landed, at which point the hijacker began stabbing passengers with a knife. Two were injured while others ran to the back of the plane. The plane then landed at Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport in Belize City. Upon landing, another passenger with a license to carry a firearm shot the hijacker dead. All two injured victims were taken to a hospital. A 49-year-old United States national and military veteran Akinyela Sawa Taylor was identified as the hijacker. Taylor had entered Belize some days before the hijacking, and during this time he was reported to have attacked a police officer. The hijacking lasted for about an hour and a half. His motive was unknown but he demanded the pilot to take him out of the country. Belize's police commissioner Chester Williams said that Taylor had previously been denied entry to Belize.

Reactions

U.S. Embassy in Belize public affairs officer Luke Martin said the embassy expressed its regret over the incident. Police commissioner Chester Williams said that it was still unknown how the hijacker managed to smuggle a knife on board, but he cited the lack of security screenings in the country's smaller airports as the probable cause.

Tropic Air said the attempted hijacking was a "serious and unprecedented inflight emergency". The CEO of the airline also described as that the actions of the pilot were "nothing short of heroic", and that they will be offering support to the injured passengers.

Aftermath

Tropic Air announced on April 30 that it will implement stricter security measures, as a result of the hijacking. These measures include personal item and physical searches. On the same day Belizean authorities announced that an investigation on the incident is ongoing, and that a full report will be published.