Piedmont Airlines Flight 21

Piedmont Airlines Flight 21 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from San Francisco International Airport in San Bruno, California to O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois. On June 11, 2007, the McDonnell Douglas MD-90 was hijacked by five members of Japanese cult Aleph and crashed into a cornfield in Nebraska, killing all 44 passengers on board. This was the first attack committed by Aleph that took place in the United States. The event caused Japanese police to keep a closer eye on Aleph.

Hijackers
The team of Aleph hijackers was led by Satoshi Kitano, from Osaka, Japan. He met cult leader Shoko Asahara while he was on death row at the Tokyo Detention House in 1999. Asahara told Kitano about the plan in secret. Kitano came to the United States in 2001 and got a commercial pilot's licence in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The hijackers on Flight 21 included Yashiro Eizan, from Tokyo, and three people from Hiroshima: brothers Oyama and Tadashi Raidon, as well as Kobashigawa Toshiyuki. They rented an apartment in Cedar City, Utah and stayed with Kitano. On April 13, 2007, Kitano purchased a four-inch pocket knife from a Sports Authority store in Boynton Beach, Florida, while Eizan bought a two-piece snap knife set at a Wal-Mart, and Oyama Raidon bought a Leatherman Wave multi-tool. Toshiyuki bought 2 hypodermic needles and filled them with Bee Venom.

Aircraft
The Piedmont Airlines Flight 21 aircraft was a McDonnell-Douglas MD-90 (registration N365TC). The aircraft was built and had its first flight in 1991. The crew included pilot Wallace Roseborough, First Officer David Winters, and flight attendants Adrienne Johnson, Leland Hill, Marion Romero, Olivia Roberson, and Rene Buchanan.

All 44 passengers on board were killed, including theater actor Sean Mato, soccer player Dexter Ramsey, and reporter Lois Dufford.

Boarding and departure
More Coming Soon!

Hijacking
More Coming Soon!

Crash
More Coming Soon!

Victims
This is a table of victims who were killed in the crash. 27 victims were from the United States, 3 were from Canada, 1 was from Ireland, 1 was from South Korea, 2 were from Germany, and 3 were from Peru. The victims' names are followed by their age, occupation, and hometown.