Passenger on Turkish Airliner attempted to divert plane to Sochi

A passenger on a flight from Ukraine to Turkey apparently attempted, but failed, to divert the Turkish airliner to Sochi, Russia, where the Winter Olympic Games were getting under way. Voice of America writes about this.

According to the source, the plane, which took off from Kharkov, Ukraine, destined for Istanbul, landed safely at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gocken Airport.

Turkish officials say the passenger claimed there was a bomb on board the Pegasus Airlines flight and demanded that it be diverted to Sochi.

Turkish media reported that the man was in custody.

Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted Ukrainian authorities as saying the man was a Ukrainian national and was drunk.