Chinese air traveller on trial for trying to open plane door

BEIJING // In the country’s first such legal case, a Chinese man was put on trial on Monday for trying to open the emergency door of an airplane without authorisation.

Chinese air travellers have tried opening emergency doors without permission 12 times in barely four months on planes that were taxiing or at a standstill, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said on Monday.

There is no immediate explanation for the apparent spike in the behaviour this year. However, Chinese are travelling in record numbers and many of them were flying for the first time and lack basic aviation safety knowledge.

The man, identified only by his family name of Piao, stood trial on Monday on the charge of endangering public safety in the northeastern city of Yanji, the administration said.

Piao opened an emergency door on an Asiana Airlines flight on February 12 when the plane was taxiing, causing the emergency slide to eject and prompting the flight crew to take emergency measures to halt the aircraft.

The incident caused the flight to be delayed for four hours and severely disrupted the airport operations, the administration said. Earlier media reports said Piao mistakenly raised the handle of the emergency door and was detained for 10 days.

Passengers have opened emergency doors without authorisation 11 other times in 2015 at airports throughout the country, said the administration.

The acts “have severely hurt aviation safety, disrupted flight operations and caused ill social impact”, the statement said.

There is no data available for previous years, but the attention paid in China to the current incidents suggest such acts were rare or non-existent in the past.

Authorities appear to be publicising recent cases as a way to educate the public and stop such acts.

Last week, tourism authorities publicly shamed Beijing resident Zhou Yue by putting him on a national blacklist for rude behaviours. Upset with flight delay, Mr Zhou forcibly opened two emergency doors on a domestic flight in January, and he was detained for 15 days.

In another case last year, a man pulled the handle to open an emergency door to let in fresh air while passengers were boarding the plane in the eastern city of Hangzhou, according to media reports.

Piao is the first person in China to face a criminal charge for such an act, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said. No verdict was announced on Monday.

* Associated Press