Soviet Practical Joker Gets 2 Years for Mock Hijacking
A practical joker who staged a mock hijack of a Soviet plane on an internal flight in March has been sentenced to two years’ corrective labor, Sovietskaya Kultura reported on Saturday.
The newspaper said the joker, who had been drinking, boarded the TU-134 airliner in Frunze, capital of the Soviet Central Asian republic of Kirgizia, on a flight to Moscow.
“When the plane completed its ascent, Roman Gaier, a passenger on the above mentioned route, asked hostess Svetlana Sytaya for some water. Then he handed her a note with the laconic message: ‘Fly to Istanbul,’ ” the newspaper related.
It said it was only after the alarmed stewardess alerted the pilot and other members of the crew that Gaier burst out laughing and invited them to share the joke.
“But the crew did not find it very funny,” the newspaper said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
