Gunman Boards Jet, Holds 2 Hostages Briefly at JFK

A gunman somehow passed through security at John F. Kennedy International Airport, boarded a plane full of passengers and held the pilot and co-pilot hostage Thursday night after the passengers fled. Both hostages were later released and police were negotiating with the man, who remained inside the plane.

The gunman issued a list of demands, including speaking with a representative of the Argentine consulate. A representative of the Argentine government was sent to the airport with a police escort.

Panicked passengers managed to scramble through the plane’s exit to safety as a SWAT team member crouched in the plane’s aisle with a shotgun pointed at the closed cockpit door to provide cover.

Authorities said the gunman at some point ordered the pilot to clear all remaining passengers from the National Airlines 757 bound for Las Vegas.

The pilot was eventually released with the gunman’s demands. The co-pilot was released about 1 a.m. EDT as police negotiated with the unidentified man.

Port Authority Police Chief William Cafaro said all 143 passengers and seven crew members had escaped or been let off the jet unharmed.

In addition to hostage negotiators, the police bomb squad rushed to the airport. It was not immediately clear whether the man had indicated he had a bomb of some sort.

“All of a sudden people started running towards the door and pushing and shoving and yelling and getting off the plane,” Kimberly Weil, who was a passenger on Flight 192, told CNN. “I was in seat 21, and by the time I got up to the door there already was a SWAT team member with a rifle or some sort of gun aimed at the pilot’s cabin and they were ushering us off.”

Weil said she waited aboard the plane for 10 to 15 minutes before she could escape.

Other passengers said the gunman walked down the aisle of the plane and in a very low voice told people to be quiet. The gunman, who was described as being in his late 20s, held a long silver-colored gun in his right hand. At one point he held his finger to his lips and shushed people.

“I didn’t know what was going on until I saw the SWAT team member with the shotgun,” said Dave Schlesinger, another passenger. “Then I knew it was serious.”

Police said the gunman entered the jet through Gate 33 at Terminal 4 of the airport.

Fog had delayed the flight for about an hour, but the aircraft was loaded and poised to move away from the gate when the gunman ran aboard.

Police brought the passengers to a terminal where detectives conducted interviews in an effort to gain insight into the incident.

Las Vegas is a major destination for National Airlines, a new carrier providing service between the gambling mecca and major U.S. cities.