World Notes CHINA

Shortly after the Boeing 737 took off from the Xiamen airport bound for Guangzhou last week, a passenger clutching flowers proceeded to the cockpit. Perhaps assuming that the man wanted to offer the flowers to the crew as a Moon Festival token, two security guards allowed him through. Once inside, the passenger reportedly opened his jacket to reveal 15 lbs. of explosives strapped to his chest and ordered all crew members, except for the pilot, out of the cockpit. He then demanded that the plane fly to Taiwan.

Instead, the pilot continued on to Guangzhou and circled above the city's Baiyun airport for 40 minutes. After the hijacker realized that he had been tricked, he either set off the bombs or scuffled with the pilot, causing the plane to lose control. Careening down the runway, the jet sideswiped an empty Boeing 707 parked nearby and slammed on top of a Boeing 757 filled with passengers en route to Shanghai.

Engulfed by a ball of flames, at least 128 people died, making this crash China's worst reported air disaster. Among the dead was the hijacker, later identified by provincial party officials as Jiang Xiaofeng, a 27-year-old "active criminal."