Hijacking (Skyjacking or Aircraft Piracy)

QUICK TAKEAWAY

Hijacking: Following a spate of international incidents of air piracy, s.76 was added to the Criminal Code in 1972, making it illegal for anyone to use force or the threat of force to seize control of a civil aircraftAll aircraft other than those operated by Canadian enforcement agencies. It is considered one of the most serious criminal offences. Penalties for hijacking include life imprisonment. It does not matter if the aircraft was in Canadian airspace at the time of the hijacking, as international conventions dictate that the laws of the country where the plane is registered apply in any airspace an aircraft is in at the time of the incident.

What is Hijacking?

Aircraft hijacking (also known as skyjacking, plane hijacking, plane jacking, air robbery, air piracy or aircraft piracy) is the unlawful seizure of an aircraft by an individual or a group. Most cases involve the pilot being forced to fly according to the hijacker's demands. Unlike carjacking or sea piracy, an aircraft hijacking is not usually committed for financial gain, but often for political or personal reasons.

The Federal Court of Appeal (Parminder Singh Saini v. Law Society of Upper Canada, 2010 ONLSHP 5 (CanLII) noted that "hijacking is considered to be among the most serious of criminal offences. It may combine, in one act, numerous offences including kidnapping, unlawful confinement, theft, assault, extortion, and potentially murder - hijacking is not the mere seizure of an aircraft for its own sake; it exploits control over the aircraft as a weapon of psychological coercion and extortion directed against governments."

In 1972, s.76 was added to the Criminal Code, making it illegal for anyone to use force or the threat of force to seize control of an aircraft. Onboard planes, it is also a crime to:

confine or imprison someone against their will;
cause anyone to be transported against their will to any place other than the next scheduled place of landing;
hold any person onboard the aircraft for ransom or to service against his will; or
cause the aircraft to deviate from its flight plan.

What is Needed to Convict

Since a hijacking happens in a confined space – the body of an aircraft – the identity, motives and actions of the perpetrator are not difficult issues to prove in court. It also does not matter if the aircraft was in Canadian air space at the time of the hijacking, as international conventions have deemed that the laws of the country the plane is registered in apply in whatever air space an aircraft is in at the time.

Hijacking is an Indictable Offence

If you have been charged with hijacking the Crown will prosecute it as an indictable offence and you will likely be imprisoned if convicted.

Penalty for Hijacking

Hijacking is always treated as an indictable offenceIndictable offences are more-serious criminal offences with a maximum penalty of imprisonment for life.