An in-flight hijacking led to a high-speed landing with a loss of control and a multi-aircraft collision on the ground in China. This was the famous triple collision at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport on October 2, 1990. Aircraft involved: Xiamen Airlines Flight 8301 (Boeing 737-200); China Southwest Airlines (unoccupied Boeing 707); and China Southern Airlines Flight 2812 (fully boarded Boeing 757-200). Shortly after takeoff from Xiamen, a hijacker breached the cockpit of Xiamen Airlines Flight 8301. He claimed to be carrying explosives and demanded to be flown to Taiwan. The captain refused to enter Taiwanese airspace and circled while negotiating until the fuel level reached a critical minimum, forcing an emergency landing in Guangzhou. During the final landing phase, a physical struggle broke out in the cockpit between the hijacker and the flight crew. This disrupted the pilot’s control inputs, resulting in an unstable, high-speed touchdown and severe runway excursion. The Boeing 737 veered off the main runway, clipped the nose and cockpit section of the parked Boeing 707, and collided with the fully loaded Boeing 757 waiting on the taxiway. The violent impact split the 757 and ignited a massive post-crash explosion. A total of 128 people died (82 aboard the hijacked Boeing 737 and 46 aboard the waiting Boeing 757), and dozens more were injured.

On November 23, 1996, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961, a Boeing 767-200ER, was hijacked en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi. Roughly 20 minutes after takeoff, three hijackers stormed the cockpit, demanding to be flown to Australia. The captain repeatedly informed the hijackers that the aircraft did not have enough fuel to reach Australia and requested permission to land and refuel, but the hijackers refused. As expected, the plane ran out of fuel while flying over the Indian Ocean, causing both engines to fail. With no power and insufficient altitude to reach a nearby runway, the captain attempted an emergency water landing near the Comoro Islands. During the attempt, the left wingtip struck the water first, causing the aircraft to roll over and break apart near a public beach. Tragically, 125 of the 175 passengers and crew members on board died, while 50 survived.