Definition

1. Verb:
   • To hijack an aircraft: To illegally seize control of an airplane or other aircraft while it is in flight, typically by force or threat of force, for purposes such as ransom, political demands, or diversion to a different destination.

Usage Examples

• Verb:
  • The terrorists attempted to skyjack the commercial airliner.
  • Authorities have implemented stricter security to prevent criminals from trying to skyjack planes.

Advanced Usage

• The term "skyjack" is a specific and dramatic word for aircraft hijacking. It is often used in news reports and official contexts to describe the act.
• It is typically used in the passive voice to describe the fate of the aircraft.
  • Several planes were skyjacked during that period of political unrest.

Variants and Related Words

• Skyjacker (noun): A person who hijacks an aircraft.
  • The skyjacker demanded the plane be flown to a different country.
• Skyjacking (noun): The act or instance of hijacking an aircraft.
  • The skyjacking ended peacefully after negotiations.

Synonyms

• Hijack: To seize control of a vehicle, especially an aircraft, by force. (This is a more general term; "skyjack" specifies the vehicle as an aircraft.)
• Commandeer: To take control of something, especially a vehicle, by force, often for official or military use. (Less specific to aircraft.)

Related Phrases

• Air piracy: A formal or legal term for the crime of hijacking an aircraft. This is the act a "skyjack" constitutes.
  • Skyjacking is a severe form of air piracy.

Verb

1. subject an aircraft to air piracy
   • the plane was skyjacked to Uzbekistan