UPDATE: Here is a sneak peek at a coming El Paso Times' video feature related to this story. This video was produced for a coming feature called "Keeping It Real," which will focus on real El Pasoans. Jerry Reynolds took photos when the hijacked plane landed in El Paso.
SunCityCynic this one is for you. This country's first commercial airline skyjacking occurred August 3, 1961.
Father, Wanted To go Live In Cuba
By MEL GEARY
Times City Editor
A $5.4 million Boeing 707 jet – reportedly constructed for Cuba but never delivered when Dictator Fulgencio Batista failed to pay for it – nearly went to that island Thursday.
An Arizona youth and his father attempted to take off in the hijacked Continental Air Lines Jet from International Airport early Thursday.
The plane played a silent drama as it rested on a runway from approximately 2 a.m. until an attempted take-off about 6 a.m.
During this four-hour period the crew stalled as it refueled the plane. Baggage, trailers, trucks, ambulances and armed officers swept about the plane to block take off.
However, clearance to fly was given at about 6 a.m., and as the plane swept along the runway officers opened with machine gun fire at the tires. The plane slowed and stopped. Vehicles and armed officers again surrounded the plane.
With tires flattened and bullet holes puncturing the sides and engines of the mammoth craft, officials sought for nearly six hours more to negotiate for the safety of six crew members and four volunteer hostages.
The two gunmen – Leon Bearden, 38, and his 16-year-old
son, Cody – finally captured, were charged with kidnapping and
interstate transportation of a stolen craft, FBI Director J. Edgar
Hoover advised.
One of the passengers on the plane who volunteered as a hostage was Border Patrol Official Leonard Gilman. After all other passengers and crewmen had been released, Gilman slugged the elder Bearden. The terrific blow sent Gilman to a hospital for treatment of a fracture hand.
El Paso FBI Agent-In-Charge Francis Crosby, who went aboard the plane to negotiate, acted instantly to jump the youth, overpowering him.
The gunmen had made their move 20 minutes before the plane arrived in El Paso.
They took control of the pilot’s cabin, but the plane had to land in El Paso for fuel.
This began the 10 hours of tense drama – pleading, stalling, maneuvering.
PUNCTURED
It was punctuated by the sharp rattle of machine-gun gullets when officers shot up the plane’s tires in a chase down the runway shortly after sun-up.
Extent of the damage to the plane was not established. The jet will be flown to Los Angles Friday for repair work, after an engine is replaced. Continental officials said.
Passengers became aware of the hijacking when they saw the guns carried by the two men.
Pilot B.D. Rickards of Los Angeles, tipped El Paso control tower with a coded radio word that his plane was hijacked.
Mary Ellis of San Antonio said she was “pretty scared. I thought we were going to Havana, and I didn’t want to go.”
Mrs. Bell Knapp of Beaumont, Tex., who with her two small children was one of the first to step from the plane, said “I saw a very young man, I was very frightened.”
After landing in El Paso, the hijackers ushered most of the passengers off the plane.
The hijackers called for four volunteers to remain as hostages. Gilman, not revealing his identity, was one of them.
Another was Army PFC. Truman Cleveland of St. Augustine, Fla., on his way to a new assignment at Ft. Bliss. Cleveland traded his Army uniform for civilian clothes from Edward Holtman, 19, of Grants Pass, Ore.
Jack Casey, a Continental employee, elected to stay, as did Luis Evrives of Los Angeles.
DE-PRESSED AREAS
Crewmen
were Capt. Rickards; 1st Officers R.C. Wagner; 2nd Officer Norman
Simons; director of passenger service, Lou Finch and Stewardesses Toni
Bassett and Lois Carnagy, all of Los Angeles.
As the finale came, crewmen who leaped from the plane were first believed to be the hijackers. A crewman was knocked down and handcuffed. Authorities handcuffed all but the stewardesses as they came form the plane.
The stewardesses identified the men as passengers, and they were released.
Thousands of spectators leaked through police roadblocks at entrances to International Airport. City police claimed press identification offered was insufficient, although they allowed some newsmen into the immediate area of the airplane, while barring others.
The Bearden father-son team showed little emotion during their arraignment before U.S. Commissioner Henry C. Clifton.
Both prisoners, their hands cuffed in front, were lead into Commissioners Court on the third floor of the Federal Court House by federal marshals and FBI agents at 2:45 p.m.
Cody Bearden, clad in a long-sleeved dark brown sports shirt, blue denim trousers and brown cowboy boots, sat quietly in the front row of the spectator section, smoking a cigarette.
His father wore a light sports shirt and brown slacks. He sat between two officials as he awaited the arraignment, and looked straight ahead.
Reporters were not allowed to converse with the defendants before or after the hearing.
Handcuffs were removed as the two were led to the bench to face Commissioner Clifton, who held two complaints filed before him by Asst. U.S. attorney Larry Fuller.
ASK NAMES
After asking both men to state their names, Clifton read the first complaint, charging the Beardens with transporting a stolen airplane from New Mexico to Texas, which violated the Dyer Act.
The commissioner read the other complaint, charging the two with kidnapping, and both entered not guilty pleas.
Clifton set bond at $50,000 on each count on each man, making total bond $200,000 for both men.
U.S. marshals replaced handcuffs and went to the elevator with the men, followed by several reporters who tried to interview the Beardens.
Harry McCormick, a reporter with The Dallas News, told the two suspects “you have a right to talk to reporters,” but he was pushed aside by FBI agents and marshals.
McCormick tried to enter the elevator repeatedly, but was pushed back, and finally, a marshal got off the elevator and held McCormick, so the operator could close the door.
Officers and the defendants walked at a fast pace, followed by newsmen and photographers, to the Kansas Street entrance of the Sheriff’s department, where they were booked into County jail as federal prisoners.
I just read your blog for the first time. I really like it!
Posted by: Justice | May 15, 2008 at 03:41 PM
I covered the story for KINT. Also reported it for KABL in San Francisco, CA.
Had my press card and was allowed just under the planes open back door. I could see both father and son with guns talking to autorities below. Then some of the other media asked the FBI how I was allowed so close and they came over and made me go back to where the media was. I found out that they thought my ID said FBI.
Posted by: Dave Richards | May 18, 2008 at 10:18 PM
The son, Cody would be 63 years old today. How long was he sentenced for? Where is he now? I assume his Dad is deceased by now. What kind of life would this 16 year old have had? I would imagene his life would have been a ruined one.
Posted by: Val | May 19, 2008 at 01:54 PM
Trish!! Thanks a bunch! I'm touched by your dedication.*sniffles*
This country's first commercial airline skyjacking-another dubious honor for El Paso I suppose. Great post, yes I love the photos!
Posted by: SunCityCynic | May 20, 2008 at 10:00 PM
Leon is alive and well. FYI :)
Posted by: KLB_JRR | June 29, 2008 at 05:24 PM
I, too, covered the story for KINT, in the terminal. While waiting for Bob Six to fly in for a press confeence, on the phone with a live story, the manager "Big Al" got on and told me to gert back to the station for my DJ show or I was fired. So ol' Dave Richards got all the glory. Good for him.
Ellis Posey
Posted by: Ellis Posey | June 07, 2009 at 11:49 AM
My dad was a rookie police officer at the time, and he told me this story, I'm not sure if he was a part of the team that was providing security for the event or one of the officers that shot out the tires. It's the first time I've thought about looking it up.
He told me another story, and I'd love to get it validated.
It was a 2nd highjacking attempt where there was only a single highjacker armed with only a straight razor and the plane basically got maced by the responding officer.
Has anyone else heard of this one? I know it was between the 61 event and maybe 67-68?
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1378580248 | September 12, 2009 at 01:42 PM
I was a civilian then and remember the incident well. In 1963 I joined the El Paso Police Dept and became acquainted with officer Risley who according to the local news, threw a a hefty reporter over the 8 ft fence at the airport during the hijacking. It struck me as a funny exaggeration as Risly was somewhat short and didn't weigh much over 150 lbs. FBI agent Crosby taught defensive tactics when I went through the academy and I learned some good stuff from him that I used during my 38 year law enforcement career. I joined the Border Patrol in 1970 and at one time worked for Gilman who became the Regional Commissioner for INS and Border Patrol in Dallas. Attorney General Bobby Kennedy ordered that the plane not be allowed to depart. I read somewhere that the same plane crashed over the Grand Canyon a few months later.
Posted by: Sal Molina | September 23, 2009 at 07:20 PM
I am having second thoughts about who allegedly threw the reporter over the fence. It was either Risly or Tom East who later went to prison for shooting his wife. They were both about the same size. Kevin, I believe it was the Border Patrol that shot the tires out on the plane.
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=579619748 | September 23, 2009 at 07:50 PM