Since the beginning of the year, barely four months, 12 air passengers have tried to open emergency doors without authorization. While there are no records of this happening previously, the attention being paid to these incidents suggests this is something new.
Things have gotten so bad that one passenger was brought to trial in the country’s first such case of endangering public safety by opening an emergency door said the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
In a statement today, the administration said the man, identified by the family name of Piao, stood trial Monday on the charge of endangering public safety in the north-eastern city of Yanji. There has been no information released on the verdict in the trial.
Even though Chinese are traveling by air in record numbers, and many for the first time, there is no explanation for the reasons behind the apparent need to rush to open the emergency doors on planes, especially while they are taxiing or standing still.
In Paio’s case, the plane was moving when he opened the door, causing the emergency ramp to eject. The flight crew had to take emergency measures to halt the plane. The interruption caused a delay of four hours and disrupted airport operations.
In the statement issued by the Civil Aviation Administration, they said the 11 other incidents have occurred all over the country. “The acts have severely hurt aviation safety, disrupted flight operations and caused ill social impact,” the statement said.
There is a growing concern in Beijing that these incidents, as well as others, are going to damage the country’s image, particularly when incidents are happening on overseas flights. Just last week, an AirAsia flight from Bangkok to Nanjing had to return to Thailand because an angry Chinese passenger threw scalding water on a flight attendant.
Authorities are wondering if the incidents are happening because new air travelers just don’t understand air safety or is this something else that’s going on. Perhaps we will all be enlightened soon.
