Remember Operation Woyla: Action By Special Forces Win The Study Of The Garuda Aircraft

Illustration of the release of aircraft hijacking hostages (Antara).

YOGYAKARTA The special forces of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) had carried out heroic and tense actions at the end of March 1981. At that time, Kopassandha (Komanddo Sandi Battalion Yudha) was a embryo from Kopassus, carrying out an operation to release the hostage from the hijacking of the Garuda woyla flight 206 aircraft. In the future this incident will be known as the Woyla operation.

This act of hijacking the Garuda DC-9 Woyla aircraft is the first "jihad" act to occur in Indonesia. The drama of hijacking the Garuda DC-9 Woyla aircraft lasted for four days at Don Mueang Airport, Bangkok.

Remember Operation Woyla

Quoted by VOI from the military.id, the exploration of aircraft belonging to the Garuda Indonesia airline began when the Garuda DC-9 Woyla plane departed from Jakarta to Medan on March 28, 1981.

When flying from Jakarta, the plane was carrying 33 people and 5 crew members. However, after transiting in Palembang, the number of passengers increased by 15 people. Thus, the total number of passengers on the Garuda DC-9 Woyla aircraft amounted to 48 people and 5 crew members.

After taking off from Palembang airport, it was reported that the plane was hijacked by five terrorists. The act of hijacking the plane was led by Imran bin Muhammad Zein.

The terrorists who came from the extreme Islamist group "Komando Jihad" managed to hijack Garuda's plane after posing as airplane passengers.

In the act of piracy, one of the terrorists armed with a revolver-type firearm went straight to the cockpit and pointed a gun at the pilot. In a threatening tone, the hijackers asked pilot captain Herman Renteke to fly to the Colombo area, Srilanka.

However, because the fuel was not enough, the plane was taken to Penang, Malaysia to refuel, and then to Don Muang Airport, Bangkok.

After arriving in Thailand, the terrorists read out their demands, namely:

As for the Cicendo incident, it occurred on March 11, 1981. After that, about 14 members of the Jihad Command stormed the Kosekta police station 8606 Pasir Kaliki, Cicendo, Bandung. The incident killed four police officers on guard.

The response given by President Suharto after hearing the demands made by the Jihad Command group was holding a military operation.

Admiral Sudomo as the representative of ABRInow the TNIcontinued Suharto's order to Benny Moerdani, who was then the Head of the Strategic Intelligence Center.

After receiving the order, Benny immediately contacted the Kopassandha Dormitory and was received by Lt. Col. Sintong Panjaitan, Kopasandha Operations Assistant.

While waiting for Benny Moerdani to lobby Thailand to allow military operations, Lt. Col. Sintong gathered troops and conducted a sandra release exercise.

Kopassandha borrowed a DC-9 plane to understand the terrain and situation during the rescue. At that time, Lieutenant Colonel Sintong Panjaitan was wrapped in a broken leg.

The simulation of the release of hostages was held for two consecutive days at the Garuda hangar.

After holding a simulation, on March 30, 1981, troops then moved to Don Muang, Bangkok. They boarded a DC-10 plane, and said they had just flown from Europe. The DC-10 plane was parked far from where the hijacked DC-9 plane was.

The terrorist raid operation that hijacked the DC-9 plane was carried out at 03.00 a.m. When it approached the raid time, troops moved closer to the plane. The windows of the plane have been closed. The Blue Team and the Red Team point to both wing of the plane while the Green Team will enter through the back door.

Rapidly, kopasandha troops broke into the cabin and immediately paralyzed four of the five hijackers. Meanwhile, Imran bin Muhammad Zein was arrested alive.

Woyla's operation claimed two lives from the military. The victims were Lieutenant Achmad Kirang and Captain Pilot Herman Rante. Both were shot from one of the terrorists. The two victims were rushed to the hospital, however, in the end they were still not saved.

Despite the military's fatalities, all passengers were successfully evacuated safely.

Thanks to his success in carrying out Woyla's operation, Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Sintong Panjaitan along with his troops were awarded the Sakti Star and promoted to one level. There is also appreciation for the troops who died in Operation Woyla, Achmad Kirang, who was promoted to two levels in general.

In addition, kopassandha forces also received international recognition. In fact, these Red Beret troops are aligned with world elite forces such as GSG 9 (Germany) and Mossad (Israel).