Passenger Deploys Emergency Chute at Beijing Airport
A Beijing Airport passenger accidentally deployed the emergency chute to her airliner pulling the lever to its emergency exit – right after she was told not to touch it.
A Xiamen Airlines flight had been preparing to leave Beijing Capital International Airport Monday morning. A Weibo user said airline staff had just completed the safety announcement in which passengers were explicitly told "not to touch the emergency doors unless it was an emergency" when a passenger simply opened the door.
Previous instances in which passengers on Chinese airliners had inadvertently opened emergency doors have been hit with fines up to RMB 100,000. Whether or not this passenger will pay this fine or face administrative detention, a common punishment for offending travelers, it remains that this person is in good company.
As China's air travel industry continues to boom, so have numerous incidents of airliner emergency doors being opened, many of which share similar excuses.
Instances where passengers have opened airliner emergency doors for "a breath of fresh air" have taken place in December 2015 as well as March 2016.
Emergency doors have been opened by passengers thinking "it was the bathroom" in March 2016 as well as April 2012.
Passengers have opened emergency doors in order "to get off the plane quicker" in January 2015 and February 2008.
And then there are other passengers who have opened an emergency door out of "curiosity," taking place in June 2010 as well as in December 2013 when a passenger admitted to investigators that he had wondered, "Is this thing the same as the thing on my door at home?"
Last August also saw a passenger open an emergency door during a domestic dispute and subsequent suicide attempt.
For the first time last December, a Chinese criminal court heard a case involving passengers inadvertently opening emergency doors on airliners. However, even though the court ruled that emergency door opener Piao Yinglan was guilty of endangering public security, she escaped criminal punishment because she "did not cause casualties or severe economic losses."
Monday's incident at the Beijing Airport appears to be the first such emergency door opening in China this year, so far.
Images: Global Times
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