On May 21, 1976, six passengers stormed the plane and diverted it to Zamboanga Airport where it was met by the military and the police.

[1][2][3] On May 21, 1976, the BAC One-Eleven operating as Flight 116 took off from Davao City to Manila International Airport at 2:30 p.m. (local time) when six armed passengers from Makati and the Moro Liberation Front announced that they would be hijacking the plane, only 10 minutes after departure.

The hijackers ordered the pilots to fly to Libya, wanting to seek asylum there imitating a successful PAL that took place in April that same year.

Upon landing in Zamboanga at around 3:00 p.m., the aircraft was immediately met with two armored cars parked towards the front of the jet.

Only a few military vehicles were on standby including two Cadillac Gage Commandos., and the operation was led by General Mariano E. Castaneda Jr.[4] The two V150 AFVs formerly parked in front of the aircraft was now pushed against the cockpit and other vital areas, however one of them rammed the jet, causing panic amongst the hijackers and setting grenades off in the cabin.