Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320

Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320, carrying passengers from Newark to Boston, was hijacked around 7:30 p.m. on March 17, 1970, by John J. Divivo who was armed with a .38 caliber revolver.[1] Captain Robert Wilbur Jr., 35, a former United States Air Force pilot who had only been promoted to captain six months prior, was shot in his arm by the suicidal hijacker. Despite his wounds, he flew his aircraft safely to a landing while talking to the tower, telling them his copilot was shot (but not himself) and needed an ambulance. His copilot, First Officer James Hartley, 30, was shot without warning by Divivo and collapsed. Despite being mortally wounded, Hartley recovered sufficiently to rip the gun from Divivo's hand, and shoot the would-be hijacker three times before lapsing into unconsciousness, and eventually death. Although wounded and slumped between the seats, Divivo arose and began clawing at Captain Wilbur, attempting to force a crash. Wilbur hit Divivo over the head with the gun he had retrieved from the center console.[2] The pilot was able to land the plane safely at Logan International Airport, and the hijacker was arrested immediately.[3] On October 31, 1970, DiVivo hanged himself while awaiting trial at Charles Street Jail.[4][5]

Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320

An Eastern Air Lines DC-9, similar to the aircraft involved in the incident
Hijack
Date	March 17, 1970
Summary	Aircraft hijacking
Site	Boston-Logan International Airport, MA, USA
Aircraft
Aircraft type	McDonnell Douglas DC-9-31
Operator	Eastern Air Lines
Registration	N8925E
Flight origin	Newark Liberty International Airport, Newark NJ
Destination	Logan International Airport, Boston, MA
Passengers	68
Crew	5
Fatalities	1
Injuries	2
Survivors	72

The incident was the first aircraft hijacking in the United States to end with a fatality.[6]

See also

• Federal Express Flight 705 – 1994 incident involving a suicidal hijacker who was overpowered by an airline flight crew
• List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft

References

1. Hijacking description at the Aviation Safety Network
2. Tristani, Captain, Eastern Air Lines (ret), J.P. (March 30, 2009). "One heck of an in-air gunfight on a civilian jet". Boston.com. Retrieved 2009-03-30.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
3. Walker, Adrian (March 20, 2009). "Friends in high places". Boston.com. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
4. "Eastern Airlines Hijacking, 1970". CelebrateBoston.com.
5. "Man Accused in Sky Murder Is Found Hanged in Boston". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Corpus Christi, Texas. AP. November 1, 1970. p. 15. Retrieved March 21, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
6. Swidey

Further reading

• Swidey, Neil (March 20, 2020). "'You don't understand, Captain. He has a gun': The hijacking of Flight 1320". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
• Robert M. Wilbur III (2019). Reluctant Hero: The Story of Eastern Airlines Flight 1320. ISBN 978-1090674814.