An “aggressive” Korean Air passenger was restrained by cabin crew after attempting to open the emergency exit door during a flight to South Korea on Friday (8 November).
Flight KE658 from Bangkok to Seoul was reportedly an hour into its almost five-and-a-half-hour journey when an unidentified man reached for the emergency exit door handle after refusing to move from a crew-only jumpseat.
According to the airline, upon crew intervention, the male passenger “exhibited non-compliant behaviour, including verbal aggression and threatening movements”.
Fellow passenger Jackson Lee shared video footage of the frightening incident in a viral TikTok.
Passenger arrested after attempting to open an exit door on board Korean Air flight KE658.
— Breaking Aviation News & Videos (@aviationbrk) November 9, 2024
In a statement Korean Air said a foreign male passenger was overwhelmed by crew and passengers on flight KE658 while flying between Bangkok and Seoul.
The passenger sat in a crew-only… pic.twitter.com/ARktP1DCYv
Several flight attendants can be seen jumping in to restrain the passenger after the man attempted to open the exit door of the Airbus A330-300 with 284 passengers on board at 37,000 feet.
Under the captain’s authority, “appropriate restraint measures” were taken by the crew and the man was “relocated to a secure area” to deescalate the situation.
The flight was met by local police after landing safely at Incheon International Airport and the disruptive passenger was detained pending investigation.
Korean Air said in a statement: “The incident was managed in accordance with Korean Air’s security protocols, with our primary focus on ensuring passenger safety and maintaining operational integrity. Korean Air takes all incidents affecting aviation safety with utmost seriousness. We will fully cooperate with relevant authorities in their investigation.”
Bad behaviour from passengers caused similar chaos in the cabin of a Copa Airlines flight last week.
A passenger on the Copa Airlines flight from Brazil to Panama was subdued and beaten after attempting to open the emergency door mid-flight – a chaotic moment captured in a viral video.
The disturbance took place last Tuesday (5 November) aboard flight CM204, 30 minutes before it landed in Panama City, according to reports.
The man grabbed a plastic knife from his meal tray and tried to take a flight attendant hostage while heading toward the emergency door, The New York Post reported.
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