As Pakistan stood at the precipice of becoming the first-ever Islamic State to have nuclear powers, India intervened in the hopes of pushing back the hands of the clock and delaying the inevitable.
When word got out, that we, the strongest Muslim nation were getting ready to conduct nuclear tests, India forced its rallies to go up against Muslims all over the country and stop the government from carrying out these crucial tests and preventing us from becoming a nuclear state.
Here, the story of Flight 544 comes into action:
Instead of attacking Pakistan head-on, they used covert methods. With the help of three men from the Baloch Students Organization, they managed to hijack a plane that would have led to delays in the nuclear test plan.
How did this story play out? How did we end up becoming the 1st Nuclear Muslim State?
How did Pakistan’s Heroes Save the Day?
On the eve of 25th of May, 1998, as Flight 544, a Fokker F27, took off from Gwadar Airport, unknown to the 33 onboard passengers and the crew, three unwanted guests had also boarded the plane. Ten minutes after takeoff, these intruders unmasked their presence, took the pilot hostage, and commanded him to direct the plane toward New Delhi, India, successfully hijacking the plane.

Due to the quick thinking of the pilot and some good luck, the plane was running out of fuel and they needed to land somewhere to refill. So, instead of heading towards Delhi, the pilot decided to land in Hyderabad. However, contrary to what the hijackers were made to believe, that they were taking a pit stop at Bhuj, India for refueling, they actually stopped at Hyderabad, Pakistan.
From there, the plot thickened. Captain Uzair Khan, the Pilot on Flight 544, addressed the control tower asking if it was the Bhuj Airport, this enabled the General Manager at Hyderabad to confirm that the airplane had been hijacked. He confirmed that this was the airport at Bhuj and the pilot was free to refuel.
This appeased the hijackers and they allowed the airplane to land for refueling. Unbeknownst to the hijackers, Pakistan’s special forces had been informed and the mission to rescue the passengers and crew was in motion.
What Happened After the Plane Landed?
As the security personnel entered the airport premises late at night, the flight also touched down. In order to keep everyone safe and sound inside the airplane, the first measure of safety put into place was to turn off all the lights in the surrounding areas to not alert the hijackers that it was Hyderabad and not Bhuj airport.

After that, the DC Hyderabad, Mr. Sohail Akbar Shah, SSP Hyderabad, Mr. Akhtar Gorchani, and ASP Latifabad, Captain Usman Anwar welcomed the hijackers to their humble abode, pretending to be Indians and speaking all the Hindi they knew at the time, as a result of watching Indian television shows.
As the night went on, they promised the hijackers that they had sent for the fuel and that it would half an hour to arrive because they had landed in the middle of nowhere. The hijackers decided to wait, however, they threatened the control tower that if anything suspicious were to happen, they would start murdering people one by one.
This led the military to an impasse. How will they save everyone before morning and will they be able to stop the hijackers before anyone is killed?
To know how this story unfolds further, delve into this mysterious yet thrilling documentary, available on YouTube: