Passenger H24: Not your typical terrorist

He was lean and swarthy, about five feet tall. He had no other distinguishing marks aside from his mustache. And he gave up his assigned seat so that two siblings could sit beside each other.

The passenger in seat H24 who hijacked the Philippine Airlines plane bound for Manila yesterday did not look like the typical terrorist you see on television and in the movies.

Twenty-year-old student Gerard Fernandez, who sat beside the hijacker in the early part of the 90-minute flight from Davao City, said he even found the man "easy to talk with."

"He was sitting beside me but he agreed to give his seat to my brother so we could be together," Fer-nandez told The STAR by telephone shortly after PR 812 landed safely at the Manila Domestic Airport.

Fernandez and his entire family had just come from a short vacation in Davao City. He said he never imagined there would be an untoward incident during their flight home, especially since security at the Davao airport was extremely tight.

"My sister bought a brass belt as a souvenir and the X-ray machine detected it. She was even asked to open her bag so it could be inspected," he said.

The hijacker, according to Fernandez, was probably in his mid- thirties and was clad only in red T-shirt and black jeans. He had a black backpack which he left in seat H24 when he stood up to go to the toilet about an hour after the plane took off.

"He even asked me where the toilet is," Fernandez said. "He never came back."

Minutes after the man left, the captain spoke through the paging system and warned of a possible "emergency landing." He assured those on board that all was well and that there was no cause for alarm. Flight stewardesses then demonstrated to the passengers what to do.

Shortly thereafter, the captain announced that the plane had been hijacked.

"He (the captain) said that there was this man who had a gun and a grenade who was asking for money. He asked us to contribute some cash and the flight attendants started to go around collecting money," Fernandez said.

About five minutes passed and the captain spoke again. "The hijacker needs more money and our flight attendants will again go to you. Please give whatever you can," he said.

Fernandez recalled that the captain also asked for a belt bag and a knife from the passengers. "They (flight attendants) may have placed the money in the belt bag," he said.

Fernandez also remembers one flight attendant going to the hijacker's seat to take the black backpack. He said the backpack may have contained the homemade parachute the hijacker used in jumping from the plane.

Fernandez last saw the hijacker as the man was being led to the rear portion of the aircraft where the door was later opened after the plane was depressurized for his exit leap.

"He looked nervous," he recalled.