When the US government passed the Anti-Hijacking Act of 1974, it was a direct response to the "Golden Age" of skyjackings. The act mandated that all airline passengers and their carry-on bags be screened before getting on the plane because, in the early '70s, hijackings from the US were out of control. Between 1960 and 1974, there were 240 hijackings or attempted hijackings between the US and Cuba alone.