Seriously, people? You have to be told not to do this?
Well, judging by some funky and rather frightening midair incidents, apparently some airline passengers need things spelled out for them.
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So now airline operators in South Korea will reportedly be required to warn passengers against indiscriminately opening aircraft emergency exits, following a recent midair plane-door incident.
At one time this announcement might have been greeted with a resounding "duh!" But we're living in a different age where some people think its okay to vape and smoke on airplanes — among other wild and crazy stunts.
Currently, airlines are required to warn passengers against in-flight smoking, use of electronic devices and actions that interfere with the duties of the cabin crew, and to announce that such behavior can become subject to criminal prosecution.
Incidents spark new rule
South Korea’s transportation ministry said the measure was included in a draft amendment of the operating guidelines for airline operators made available for public review until Dec. 14.
Passengers who tamper with plane entrances, emergency exits or devices that hinder the security or operation of an aircraft could face imprisonment for up to 10 years under aviation-security laws, Yonhap News Agency reported on Nov. 28.
The measure comes after an incident in May where a man opened an aircraft door on board an Asiana Airlines flight minutes before landing at Daegu International Airport, located 147 miles (237km) southeast of Seoul.
Passengers on board said they attempted to stop the man, who was able to partly open the door, officials reported. Crews took 12 passengers to hospitals for treatment in connection to “breathing problems and other minor symptoms.”
More recently, a woman attempted to open an emergency exit door during a Korean Air flight.
Police at Incheon International Airport said that the incident happened aboard a Korean Air flight from New York to Incheon, South Korea, when she attempted to open an emergency exit on the plane.
U.S. FAA says there's 'more work to do'
The passenger, a 26-year-old woman, was restrained by crew members on the plane and taken into custody by police when the plane arrived in South Korea. The woman later tested positive for meth after a drug screening, officials said.
Before attempting to open the emergency exit door, the woman reportedly began showing signs of anxiety nearly 10 hours into the overseas flight.
The woman doesn't have a history of mental illness and entered South Korea after a six-month stay in New York.
Southwest Airlines (LUV) -) had its own door-opening experience recently at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.
In this particular case, however, the plane was still on the ground when a man opened the over-wing emergency exit door, jumped down off the plane, and ran across the tarmac in an attempt to drive away in a service truck.
The individual was stopped by authorities.
The rate of unruly passenger incidents has dropped by more than 80% since record highs in early 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration said. But the U.S. agency said that “recent increases show there remains more work to do.”
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