Ex-pilot called himself messiah on climate-change mission, day before alleged hijack

The day before the suspected hijacking of a light aircraft triggered a security scare at Vancouver's airport this week, former commercial pilot Shaheer Cassim posted on social media that he was a "messenger of Allah" sent to save humanity from climate change.

A 39-year-old man with the same name has now been charged with hijacking, constituting terrorism, over the incident on Tuesday that saw Norad scramble F-15 fighter jets before the light plane safely landed.

RCMP say the suspect had an "ideological motive" and allegedly seized control of the plane at Victoria International Airport after threatening a flight instructor, before flying to Vancouver.

Images posted on social media depicting the arrest of the Cessna's pilot on the north runway of YVR show a bearded man who resembles climate activist Cassim.

In his Facebook post on Monday, Cassim says he's the "messiah sent to save humanity from climate change and usher in an era of world peace."

He warns of "abrupt runaway global warming" that will cause humans to go extinct within a few years.

In 2012, Cassim held a news conference before going on a cross-country bicycle ride to raise awareness for global warming. 

His Facebook profile says he was employed from 2008 to 2010 by now-defunct KD Air, a small airline based on Vancouver Island. 

The airline's former owners, Diana and Lars Banke, said in an interview that Cassim was one of the smartest and best pilots they ever worked with, calling him a fast learner who was highly intelligent. 

But Lars Banke said Cassim left the airline after getting "bored" and then went to medical school. He also said Cassim believed the world was coming to an end.

Diana Banke said she was "very surprised" to hear of Cassim's charges, saying he was quite young when he worked for them and was "like a kid." 

"Something would (have to) be going on that's not normal," Lars Banke said. "He was, I would say, a caring person." 

Diana Banke said she remembered Cassim "doing a really long bicycle trek," and that he brought a dog along with him. 

Lars Banke said he recalled that Cassim was somewhat interested in environmentalism, but he was unaware of any kind of religious beliefs. 

"He never spoke religion with us," Diana Banke said. 

Cassim's online posts include musings on religion, climate science, and advocacy for tolerance and peace, including a claim "the Angel Gabriel appeared before me and gave me a message from Allah."

"I'm really surprised that he would've done something like this," Diana Banke said. 

His Facebook profile says Cassim attended high school in Lloydminster, Alta., before studying aviation at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.

He also describes himself as the editor of a blog devoted to the impact of climate change on the Arctic. It includes hundreds of posts since 2011, many of them highly technical, with the latest entry made on Saturday.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck