SAA Crew hijacked in cash-in-transit heist

[4HolerPoler]

Just another day in Durbs when some previously disadvantaged, soon to be very rich entrepreneurs liberated the crew of their crew-bus.

A group of South African Airways (SAA) workers were left stranded outside Durban on Saturday when armed men hijacked them at gunpoint. The men were fleeing police after a foiled cash-in-transit heist. Police spokesperson Senior Superintendent Phindile Radebe said the SAA crew of seven, including two pilots, were traveling on the N3 near the Durban International Airport when 15 armed men stopped them at gunpoint. The men took the car keys and fled. Earlier, the men had rammed a Coin Security vehicle with a white BMW, shooting at the three guards inside with AK47s. Radebe said the men fled before they could take cash from the vehicle. The security guards and the crew escaped without injuries.

Nightstops will never be the same for these guys. Be careful out there doesn't help anymore. They'll find you.

4HP

[Shrike200]

15!?!?! *Heads off to ye olde shoppe to buy more magazines and ammo*

Thats bad, I hope they get over it.

[4HolerPoler]

Here's the latest:

A flight from Durban to Johannesburg on Saturday was cancelled after the pilots and crew of the aircraft had been involved in a shooting during a foiled transit heist. The South African Airways crew at first thought they were seeing an ordinary car accident when a white BMW collided head-on with a Coin Security vehicle at 08:00 on Saturday. When a group of men armed with AK-47 assault rifles jumped out of the BMW, the pilot and co-pilot - who were in the front seat of the commuter bus - quickly tried to hide from the fire," said director Johan Booysen, commander of the police unit against serious violent crime in KwaZulu-Natal. Five other crew were with them. The next moment, a robber appeared next to the bus and fired a shot through the closed window. The bullet hit the dashboard below which the pilot and co-pilot were cowering.

The robbers fired several more shots around the security vehicle, but left empty-handed in two bakkies shortly afterwards. The co-pilot was slightly wounded by a glass shard that hit him in the knee after the shot was fired through the window. Two of four security guards in the security vehicle were slightly injured when it overturned and rolled after the collision. Booysen said traffic on Luthuli Highway, which used to be the M4-South, was delayed for four hours as a result of the foiled robbery. The shocked crew were taken to their hotel and were returned to Johannesburg later on Saturday, said Jacqui O'Sullivan of SAA. Their names were not released. O'Sullivan said: "They were in no condition to undertake a scheduled flight and the passengers were placed on other flights."

[B Sousa]

[QUOTE][/The bullet hit the dashboard below which the pilot and co-pilot were cowering.
QUOTE]
I think that coment was uncalled for. There is no doubt in anyones minds that since they were both pilots they were no doubt under the dash formulating a plan in which to send these morons to their proper resting place....

[Shrike200]

Yeah, that was a silly choice of words. It should have read 'hiding', or 'wisely seeking cover'. I suppose the writer expected them to stand up and nobly take one in the chest or something.

[desertrose]

I would like to see the person who would just sit there and not try to take cover if all of a sudden an AK47 appears next to your window!!
Who were the unfortunate pilots?

[TooBadSoSad]

No names please from those who may know who the pilots were!!

[Romeo E.T.]

Did the "villains" take crew bags and all....If so then the CAA nightmare of getting the licences back etc has just begun....or were the crew bags hopefully found abandoned somewhere still intact minus valuables?

[TooBadSoSad]

The crew bus was not hijacked - the cash-in-transit criminals took the driver's keys but otherwise were not interested in the crew or their possessions. They simply wanted to immobilise the vehicle and scare its occupants.

[Romeo E.T.]

That's good to hear, still a frightening experience non-the-less. Often travel that route enroute to hotel for nighstop with our crew and dont think twice of any thing happening, normally too "bushed" after a days hard flying. Glad too see all OK