Wegener was the GSG 9 commander at the liberation of the hostages of the PFLP on the Boeing 737 '' Landshut '' , operated by Lufthansa as flight 181 , in Mogadishu , Somalia , in the night from 17 to 18 October 1977 . Wegener , at the head of one group , blew open the front door of the aircraft as the German commandos stormed the plane . Two terrorists were killed , one was fatally wounded and the fourth was captured alive . Having both planned and led the successful operation to liberate the hostages of the Lufthansa 181 hijacking Wegener was awarded the German Commander 's Cross of the Federal Cross of Merit ( Großes Bundesverdienstkreuz )
Landshut
Lufthansa Flight 181
Ulrich Wegener