Murderer and attempted presidential assassin. On February 22, 1974, he shot and killed two people in the process of hijacking an airplane, with the intent of crashing the craft into the White House and killing President Richard Nixon. Shortly after 7:00 a.m., he arrived at Baltimore/Washington International Airport. On his person, he had a briefcase that contained an improvised gasoline bomb. Under his raincoat, he concealed a .22 pistol, which he stole from a friend. He strode to the front of the line at Gate C, where customers were queued to board DC-9 Delta Air Lines Flight 523 to Atlanta, Georgia. Maryland Aviation Administration policeman George Neal Ramsburg was facing away from him, and he shot Ramsburg twice in the back. As would-be passengers fled, he hopped over the security chain and made his way to the airplane. After firing a bullet in the cabin, he entered the open cockpit, where pilot Reese Douglas Loftin and co-pilot Fred Jones were stationed. He barked at them to "Fly this plane out of here!" Loftin explained that the ground crew had not yet removed the wheel blocks, and it was not possible to back the aircraft away from the gate yet. Angered, he shot Jones in the stomach and screamed at Loftin, "The next one will be in the head!" Erratic, he went back into the cabin and grabbed a passenger, ordering her to help Loftin fly the plane. Soon, more shots were fired — some by him and some by Anne Arundel County police. One bullet pierced Byck's stomach, and a second entered his chest. He fell to the ground, fumbled for his gun, and turned it on himself. He ended three lives that day — Ramsburg's, Jones's, and his own — but not the president's. He was portrayed by actor Sean Penn in a 2004 movie about the hijacking.
Murderer and attempted presidential assassin. On February 22, 1974, he shot and killed two people in the process of hijacking an airplane, with the intent of crashing the craft into the White House and killing President Richard Nixon. Shortly after 7:00 a.m., he arrived at Baltimore/Washington International Airport. On his person, he had a briefcase that contained an improvised gasoline bomb. Under his raincoat, he concealed a .22 pistol, which he stole from a friend. He strode to the front of the line at Gate C, where customers were queued to board DC-9 Delta Air Lines Flight 523 to Atlanta, Georgia. Maryland Aviation Administration policeman George Neal Ramsburg was facing away from him, and he shot Ramsburg twice in the back. As would-be passengers fled, he hopped over the security chain and made his way to the airplane. After firing a bullet in the cabin, he entered the open cockpit, where pilot Reese Douglas Loftin and co-pilot Fred Jones were stationed. He barked at them to "Fly this plane out of here!" Loftin explained that the ground crew had not yet removed the wheel blocks, and it was not possible to back the aircraft away from the gate yet. Angered, he shot Jones in the stomach and screamed at Loftin, "The next one will be in the head!" Erratic, he went back into the cabin and grabbed a passenger, ordering her to help Loftin fly the plane. Soon, more shots were fired — some by him and some by Anne Arundel County police. One bullet pierced Byck's stomach, and a second entered his chest. He fell to the ground, fumbled for his gun, and turned it on himself. He ended three lives that day — Ramsburg's, Jones's, and his own — but not the president's. He was portrayed by actor Sean Penn in a 2004 movie about the hijacking.
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