Thief steals aeroplane at airport 22 years after two men went away with Boeing 727

To many, stealing an aeroplane right inside the airport with a watertight security system in place seems unbelievable, but a man in Canada stole a light aeroplane at an airport in the country, circled it around and later landed it before he was arrested by security officials.

This came 22 years after two men entered a Boeing 727 parked inside the airport in Luanda, the Angolan capital, and went away with the big aircraft. According to reports, the aeroplane had not been found till today and the men had evaded arrest since then.

According to the Cable News Network (CNN), the stolen Cessna 172 aircraft caused a temporary shutdown of the airspace over Vancouver International Airport, one of the busiest in Canada, on Tuesday. The man stole the aircraft, took off from Victoria International Airport, where it is used for flight training, and flew north about 40 miles to Vancouver. He started circling, apparently due to his lack of expertise.

“We do have an aircraft that has been stolen and is in the vicinity of the airport,” a tower controller warned other pilots. “Just in case anything starts heading towards you, you have the ability to move at your discretion.” The man eventually landed the plane safely at Vancouver International Airport and was immediately surrounded by police. The thief, who was not identified by authorities, was the only person inside and was arrested.

A similar incident also occurred at Luanda International Airport, Angola, when two individuals successfully stole a Boeing 727 without any security official knowing about the theft until a few hours later.

The Boeing 727, once operated by American Airlines, was retired and left at Luanda airport after plans to convert it were rejected. In 2003, two men—a pilot and a mechanic—illegally boarded the plane and took off with 14,000 gallons of fuel, enough to travel 1,500 miles. The plane and the men were never found. 

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