Air France Flight 8969

Air France Flight 8969

F-GBEC, the aircraft involved in the hijacking
Hijacking
Date	24–26 December 1994 (2 days)
Summary	Hijacking by Armed Islamic Group of Algeria
Site	24–25 December: Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria 26 December: Marseille Provence Airport, Marseille, France 43°26′23″N 5°12′54″E / 43.43972°N 5.21500°E / 43.43972; 5.21500
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Airbus A300B2-1C
Operator	Air France
IATA flight No.	AF8969
ICAO flight No.	AFR8969
Call sign	AIRFRANS 8969
Registration	F-GBEC
Flight origin	Houari Boumedienne Airport
Destination	Paris–Orly Airport
Occupants	236 (including 4 hijackers)
Passengers	224 (including 4 hijackers)
Crew	12
Fatalities	7 (3 passengers, all 4 hijackers)
Injuries	25 (13 passengers, 3 crew, 9 GIGN)
Survivors	229

Air France Flight 8969 was an Air France flight that was hijacked on 24 December 1994 by the Armed Islamic Group of Algeria (GIA) at Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers. The terrorists murdered three passengers and their intention was either to detonate the aircraft over the Eiffel Tower or the Tour Montparnasse in Paris. When the aircraft reached Marseille, the National Gendarmerie Intervention Group (GIGN), a tier one counterterrorism and hostage rescue unit of the French National Gendarmerie, stormed the plane and killed all four hijackers.^[1][2]

The incident led to Air France halting their flights to Algeria until 2004, two years after the end of the Algerian Civil War.^{[citation needed]}