Former commercial pilot charged with hijacking and terrorism over Vancouver flight

A worker moves luggage trolleys outside Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, B.C., on Thursday, Dec. 31, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

VANCOUVER — A man who allegedly seized a light aircraft in Victoria, setting off a security scare at Vancouver International Airport on Tuesday, has been charged with hijacking and terrorism offences.

A spokeswoman for the Public Prosecution Service of Canada provided a court file number on Wednesday that matches a case in B.C. provincial court involving a former commercial airline pilot based in Victoria.

The man with the same name, Shaheer Cassim, has previously been involved in climate activism.

In 2012, Cassim held a news conference in Victoria at the start of a cross-country bicycle trek to raise awareness of global warming. Cassim said at the time that he was a commercial airline pilot.

Landings at YVR were halted for more than half an hour on Tuesday afternoon as the Cessna 172 circled at a low altitude in the airspace above the airport.

The plane had taken off just before 1 p.m. from Victoria airport, where a spokesman said the aircraft was operated by the Victoria Flying Club.

Flight radar shows it flew straight to Vancouver’s airport before circling for about 25 minutes.

Police said it landed at YVR at about 1:45 p.m., and social media videos show a swarm of police vehicles closing in on the taxiing plane, before the bearded pilot emerges and walks backwards towards officers who train their weapons on him.

Norad confirmed on Wednesday that it scrambled F-15 fighter jets in response to the alleged hijacking.

A spokeswoman for the North American Aerospace Defence Command said additional F-18 fighters were also being readied to respond, but the Cessna landed before those planes were deployed.

“I can confirm that the civilian pilot landed his aircraft before the fighters intercepted it,” she said. “So, an interception did not occur because of the aircraft landing.”

RCMP have not disclosed a potential motive in the case, but a recorded conversation involving a Vancouver air traffic controller suggests the alleged hijacking may have been motivated by “some type of protest.”

In the conversation, which is part of an online archive of air traffic recordings, the grounded pilot of a commercial jet asks why his plane is being held at the gate.

An unidentified air traffic controller responds that a Cessna is circling about 500 feet over the airport in an apparent protest and the situation could last “a couple hours,” although the Cessna landed about 10 minutes later.

The controller and the grounded pilot also discuss when such an incident last occurred, and one of them is heard saying “maybe the ’70s.”

Another recording of a radio conversation between airport operations for arrivals and departures that occurred while the aircraft was circling above says the suspect “expected to be arrested.”

The incident resulted in what YVR called a 39-minute “ground stop” for arrivals.

Vancouver air-traffic control first mentioned a “rogue aircraft” shortly after 1 p.m. on Tuesday, asking nearby aircraft to keep an eye out for the Cessna and to inform controllers of any need to “manoeuvre as necessary.”

The Victoria Flying Club said no details could be shared due to an active and ongoing investigation “with numerous factors still being assessed.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2025.

Darryl Greer and Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press