Teen on Jeju Air flight nabbed for mid-air escape attempt

Social Affairs

Published: 19 Jun. 2023, 17:13 Updated: 19 Jun. 2023, 18:31

Teen on Jeju Air flight nabbed for mid-air escape attempt

A photo posted to an online community around the time of the incident when an 18-year-old tried to open a passenger door of a Jeju Air flight traveling from Cebu to Incheon on Monday [SCREEN CAPTURE]

An 18-year-old who tried to open a plane door mid-flight was restrained by the cabin crew and other passengers.

The teenager boarded Jeju Air flight 7C402 from Cebu to Incheon, which took off with around 180 passengers at 1:49 a.m. Monday, and attempted to open the Boeing-737 aircraft’s passenger door, according to the airline and police.

The door did not open because the plane’s passenger doors are designed to stay locked after take-off. The results from investigations showed that it would not have opened due to the difference in the internal and external air pressure.

The 18-year-old reportedly began complaining about feeling stuffy around an hour past take-off. The cabin crew moved him to a seat close to a passenger door to calm him down, but the teen headed towards the door and tried to open it.

He was immediately restrained by the crew and other passengers, and tied to a seat for the remaining three hours of the flight.

Witness accounts posted online said that the teen threatened the crew with a pen and threw a tantrum, yelling that he will kill everyone onboard by opening the door.

The boy was upset because the crew moved him to another seat, according to sources.

The 18-year-old was handed over to the airport police upon landing and is currently under investigation for violating the Aviation Security Act.

“Thanks to the crew’s quick judgment and actions, there was no significant accident [···] and no human injury or property damage,” a Jeju Air spokesperson said.

The accident comes less than a month after a man in his 30s who said he felt “trapped” opened an emergency exit door of an Asiana Airlines aircraft as it descended for landing on May 26.

BY LEE BO-RAM [sohn.dongjoo@joongang.co.kr]