IC 814 passenger recalled thinking hijackers were shooting a movie, asked them for whiskey and got yelled at: ‘I put my glass down’

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Asked about his initial response to the hijacking, Bhat said, “The flight was to take off from Kathmandu at 2:30 pm, as per schedule. It took off at 4:30, and we were looking forward to Christmas Eve parties in Delhi. On that day, at the Kathmandu airport, there was absolutely no security. All machines were down, as if it was pre-planned. We later understood that. Anybody could walk in and walk out. It was a shock to me, because I’d been travelling to Kathmandu for 10 years. But nevertheless, we went to the aircraft, and the flight took off for Delhi.”

The IC 814 hijacking took place in 1999.

He continued, “Within 10 minutes, we were on course, and we were served drinks first, then food. After about 20 minutes, we were all busy with our drinks. Suddenly, there was a commotion. I was in the last row, and just opposite me, I saw a masked person with a knife in his hand, shouting, ‘Aap sab baithe raho, koi uthega toh goli maarenge‘. He had a grenade in his hand. I’d been travelling for so long, I thought they were shooting for a movie. I raised my hand and asked for another scotch. He got irritated, perhaps, and he shouted at me. That’s when I realised something is happening, and I put my glass down.”

The hijackers agreed to release the passengers on December 31, after Indian authorities agreed to the release of three terrorists. One hostage, Rupin Katyal, was killed during the incident.