“Hijacking of Flight 601” has arrived on Netflix with 6 chapters full of tension and heroism. The story, starring Mónica Lopera, Christian Tappan, Enrique Carriazo, Ángela Cano and Marcela Benjumea, promises to keep the audience on the edge of their seats, in much the same way that the real events at the time did for those who lived them. .
The true story of Netflix’s ‘Hijacking of Flight 601’ series
On May 30, 1973, flight HK-1274 of Sociedad Aeronáutica de Medellín, SAM, which covered the Bogotá-Cali-Pereira route and had 84 on board, became the scene of a tense odyssey that lasted 55 hours and toured several Latin American countries . It all started when two armed men who identified themselves as members of the ELN (National Liberation Army of Colombia) announced that they had hijacked the plane.
The original destination requested by the hijackers was Aruba, where they landed that afternoon. The criminals demanded a ransom of 200 thousand dollars and the release of political prisoners in Colombia. However, their demands were not met: the Colombian government refused to negotiate, while the airline responded that it had a budget of only $20,000.
Despite the tension, the kidnappers agreed to release a group of cyclists in Aruba who were to participate in the RCN Classic.
After the authorities refused, the criminals decided to prolong their crime as long as possible, forcing the people responsible for flight HK-1274 to travel to other countries in Latin America. However, no airport gave them permission to land and so they spent hours in the air.
In the few stops they managed to make several passengers managed to escape. Eventually, the hijackers released 14 of the 23 remaining passengers in Chile.
The hijacking ended in Mendoza, Argentina, where the last passengers were released after 55 hours of abduction. Only the crew and the hijackers, who were identified five days after the hijacking as Eusebio Borja and Francisco Solano Lopez, remained on board.
To the surprise of the crew and the authorities, the men in question were not members of the ELN, not even Colombian. In reality, they were two Paraguayan soccer players living in Pereira looking to make some money.
What happened to the hijackers of flight HK-1274?
Solano López was extradited to Colombia and served a five-year prison sentence, while Borja still escaped to Argentina and his whereabouts have since been unknown.
Is the Netflix series ‘Hijacking of Flight 601’ based on a book?
As already mentioned, the events of the Netflix series happened in real life, so the true story is the main inspiration.
Of course, the joke is so unusual that, before he transferred it to television, it inspired other schemes. In 2010, Italian journalist Massimo Di Ricco published “The Damned in the Air”. The book is the main reference for the “Hijacking of Flight 601”.
In 2021, the podcast “Radio Ambulante” told the story in the episode “Los aeropiraratas”.
Did you know the real story behind the “Flight 601 Experience”? Let us know in the comments if you’re interested in watching the Netflix series.
Source: univision
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
