1974 Assassination Attempt on Nixon actually works

Feburary 22, 1974, a former Salesman Samuel Byck hijacked a plane in the attempt to crash into the White House to kill Nixon, his plan didnt work because he shot the pilots.

So lets say this Hijacking actually works, and is able to crash into the White House and kills Nixon, and his cabinet.

So what happens from there on...
 
Feburary 22, 1974, a former Salesman Samuel Byck hijacked a plane in the attempt to crash into the White House to kill Nixon, his plan didnt work because he shot the pilots.

So lets say this Hijacking actually works, and is able to crash into the White House and kills Nixon, and his cabinet.

So what happens from there on...

Let me get this straight, he points a gun at two pilots and tells them to crash an airplane into the White House? And they actually do it?

There is no way that a sane individual is going to follow that order.
 
Let me get this straight, he points a gun at two pilots and tells them to crash an airplane into the White House? And they actually do it?

There is no way that a sane individual is going to follow that order.

Well he also had a bomb on board..

but I just wanted to know what would happen after that..
 

Zioneer

Banned
Let me get this straight, he points a gun at two pilots and tells them to crash an airplane into the White House? And they actually do it?

There is no way that a sane individual is going to follow that order.

Easy; he points a gun to the two pilots, tells them to fly to Washington DC, and THEN shoots them at the last possible minute.
 
Gerald Ford becomes President about six months earlier than he did in OTL. Perhaps has an easier time getting re-elected in '76 without the pardon hanging over him.
 
That might lead to conspiracy theories later on, with Nixon or perhaps the GOP deliberately allowing the terrorist attack to get rid of the liability of Nixon's legal status.
 
Byck's plan was unworkable. The pilots were not going to comply with his demands (back then a multi-engine jet pilot was almost certainly ex-Air Force...), and he did not know how to fly or navigate the plane.

OTOH, a few weeks earlier, a disgruntled Army private had stolen a helicopter and landed on the White House Lawn before being shot at by Secret Service. If he'd been crazier and flown it straight through the windows of the Oval Office, he might have possibly have killed Nixon.
 

wormyguy

Banned
It's not difficult at all simply to fly a plane, even a large jetliner, if you don't intend to take off or land. If he simply hijacks a plane bound for DC instead, with the correct heading already programmed into the autopilot, it could work.
 
Washington gets SAMs activated around it, which are periodically upgraded.
As a result, expect some possible shootdowns of aircraft in the future. (It would be ironic if Air Florida Flight 90 or Frank Eugene Corder were shot down as a result...)
 
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