‘I didn’t resist … I didn’t have any choice’ Pilot forced to help break French criminal out of prison reveals his terror
Stephane Buy was expecting to give flying lessons; instead he was taken hostage and ordered to help Redoine Faid escape prison
The helicopter pilot who was taken hostage and forced to help heavily armed men free a notorious French criminal from prison has spoken publicly for the first time about his ordeal.
Stephane Buy said he was expecting to give a flying lesson to two men on Sunday; instead, he was beaten, knocked briefly unconscious and ordered to take a group of masked men to break Redoine Faid out of jail.
The hunt continues for Faid, 46, a serial criminal serving 25 years for his part in a failed robbery in 2010 in which a police officer died.
It is the second time in five years that Faïd has broken out of jail. French authorities believe the gang may have flown drones over the prison in recent months to become familiar with its layout in preparation for the raid.
Buy, an experienced pilot with 3,000 flying hours, said he had been approached by two men, one around 50 and the second in his 20s, for lessons.
“It was the second or third time I’d seen them. They’d already done an initiation flight with me and it had gone very well. I thought it was a father who wanted to treat his son. It was a flying lesson like any other,” he told RTL radio.