1970 Pan American Airlines hijacking hero dies at 84

Pan American AirlinesAccording to reports, John Ferruggio, credited with saving 170 lives during a 1970 Pan American Airlines hijacking, died of organ failure at a Milton, Mass., hospital. He was age 84.

The Boston Globe has reported that Ferruggio, an in-flight director on the plane, took control of the situation on the Pan American World Airways Flight 93, which was supposed to go from Amsterdam to New York.

The plane was the fourth New York-bound jet in a coordinated set of hijackings Sept. 6, 1970, by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. The plane was diverted to Cairo, where, the hijackers told Ferruggio, it would explode minutes after landing.

Ferruggio said, "At no time was there any panic. We tried to make (the hijackers) feel relaxed. We joked and kidded and told them we wouldn't charge them for the extra fare to Beirut."

"Now hear this and hear it good. When this plane comes to a complete stop ... don't wait for me, don't wait for the captain, and don't wait for Jesus Christ. We are going to evacuate this plane, like right now,'' Ferruggio told the attendants.

Everyone escaped the plane seconds before it exploded.

His wife, Susan, said, "John often talked about the possibility of being hijacked, but always flippantly. He would say, 'Oh, well, I'll go down to Cuba to get my cigars.'' (With Inputs from Agencies)