AIM Text
- A special emergency is a condition of air piracy, or other hostile act by a person(s) aboard an aircraft, which threatens the safety of the aircraft or its passengers.
- The pilot of an aircraft reporting a special emergency condition should:
- If circumstances permit, apply distress or urgency radio-telephony procedures. Include the details of the special emergency.
- If circumstances do not permit the use of prescribed distress or urgency procedures, transmit:
- On the air/ground frequency in use at the time.
- As many as possible of the following elements spoken distinctly and in the following order:
- Name of the station addressed (time and circumstances permitting).
- The identification of the aircraft and present position.
- The nature of the special emergency condition and pilot intentions (circumstances permitting).
- If unable to provide this information, use code words and/or transponder as follows:
Spoken Words
TRANSPONDER SEVEN FIVE ZERO ZEROMeaning
I am being hijacked/forced to a new destinationTransponder Setting
Mode 3/A, Code 7500
- Air traffic controllers will acknowledge and confirm receipt of transponder Code 7500 by asking the pilot to verify it. If the aircraft is not being subjected to unlawful interference, the pilot should respond to the query by broadcasting in the clear that the aircraft is not being subjected to unlawful interference. Upon receipt of this information, the controller will request the pilot to verify the code selection depicted in the code selector windows in the transponder control panel and change the code to the appropriate setting. If the pilot replies in the affirmative or does not reply, the controller will not ask further questions but will flight follow, respond to pilot requests and notify appropriate authorities.
- If it is possible to do so without jeopardizing the safety of the flight, the pilot of a hijacked passenger aircraft, after departing from the cleared routing over which the aircraft was operating, will attempt to do one or more of the following things, insofar as circumstances may permit:
- Maintain a true airspeed of no more than 400 knots, and preferably an altitude of between 10,000 and 25,000 feet.
- Fly a course toward the destination which the hijacker has announced.
- If these procedures result in either radio contact or air intercept, the pilot will attempt to comply with any instructions received which may direct the aircraft to an appropriate landing field or alter the aircraft's flight path off its current course, away from protected airspace.
Source: FAA Aeronautical Information Manual · current edition · paragraph 6-3-4.
The short answer
This AIM section is FAA advisory guidance on a special emergency: air piracy or another hostile act aboard an aircraft. It explains distress/urgency reporting, the hijack transponder Code 7500 ("SEVEN FIVE ZERO ZERO"), how controllers confirm it, and recommended airspeed and altitude for a hijacked aircraft.
Research Notes
Common Questions
What transponder code means a hijacking?
Mode 3/A, Code 7500, spoken "SEVEN FIVE ZERO ZERO," means "I am being hijacked/forced to a new destination." The AIM notes Code 7500 will never be assigned by ATC without prior pilot notification of unlawful interference and triggers the special emergency indicator in all radar ATC facilities.
How does ATC confirm a 7500 squawk?
Controllers acknowledge Code 7500 by asking the pilot to verify it. If the pilot replies in the affirmative or does not reply, the controller asks no further questions but will flight follow, respond to pilot requests, and notify appropriate authorities.
What airspeed and altitude should a hijacked aircraft try to fly?
If it can be done without jeopardizing safety, the pilot will attempt to maintain a true airspeed of no more than 400 knots, preferably an altitude between 10,000 and 25,000 feet, and fly a course toward the destination the hijacker has announced.