SEOUL: South Korean authorities on Friday (May 26) detained a man after he opened the door of an Asiana Airlines plane minutes before it was due to land in the city of Daegu, causing panic among the passengers, officials said.
The Airbus A321-200 plane landed safely at around 12.40pm local time. It had set off from the holiday island of Jeju an hour earlier, the airport’s flight schedule showed.
No one was hurt in the incident but nine people, all teenagers, were sent to hospital after suffering breathing issues, a Daegu fire department official said.
“I thought the plane was going to explode … It looked like passengers next to the open door were fainting,” an unidentified 44-year-old passenger told the Yonhap News Agency.
The passenger said the cabin crew had made an in-flight announcement asking if there were any doctors on board.
A video aired on television, reported to have been shot by a passenger, showed the moments before the landing, with a plane door open and wind rushing in as passengers sat nearby.
The transport ministry said in a statement police had taken into custody the man who had opened the door and authorities were investigating violations of aviation safety laws.
The ministry did not say why he had opened the door.