The jetliner, en route from Beijing to Changsha, landed safely Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, an official at that airport was quoted as saying.

The man, aged about 30, walked toward the fore compartment and shouted he wanted to hijack the plane to the Republic of Korea. The man speaks a northeast China accent.

The flight, CA1343, a Boeing 737-300, landed at around 10:00 am.

A Zhengzhou airport official said the passengers had left the aircraft safely. The plane was not damaged, the official said.

An official at the airport in Beijing said the plane took off at 8:40 am and had been scheduled to land in Hunan at 10:30 am. She said 108 passengers had checked in for the flight, but did not know how many crew members were aboard.

"It is not that serious, we even cannot define it as a 'hijacking'," a spokeswoman from CAAC said but gave no further details.

Reports indicate the man had no weapon or explosive and shouted his hijacking intention in the cabin and threathened to hijack the jetline to South Korea. He was later overpowered by security officers and was taken off the plane at Zhengzhou. It is reported this man has record of suffering from mental disorders.

The plane, passengers and luggage would be checked again at the Zhengzhou airport.

A Changsha airport official said the incident was resolved and the plane later left Zhengzhou for Changsha.

(China Daily July 26, 2004)