Plane door opened minutes before landing, leading to immediate arrest of passenger in South Korea

A passenger was arrested as an Asiana Airlines flight touched down safely in the South Korean city of Daegu on Friday, despite opening the emergency cabin door of the Airbus A321 minutes before landing.

South Korea’s transport ministry said some people on board tried to stop him, but he was able to partially open the door.

The man was detained by airport police on suspicion of violating aviation security laws, a ministry statement said. The man’s identity and motive were not immediately released, but local media said he was an older man in his 30s.

The ministry said the law prevents passengers from tampering with exit doors and other devices on board and provides for a prison term of up to 10 years.

The plane, which had 194 passengers and six crew members on board, was en route to Daegu from the South Korean island of Jeju. The flight is usually an hour long, and the incident occurred when the plane was approaching Daegu Airport at an altitude of about 700 feet.

A video, apparently taken by a person on board and posted on social media, shows some passengers’ hair being cut off by wind blowing into the cabin through an open door.

Among those shaken by the incident were 48 teenage athletes who were on their way to the national under-15 track and field meet, which starts in Daegu on Saturday. Ten of these children belonged to the judo team.

An official with the Jeju Sports Council told CBS News’ Jane Cowan that eight players and one coach were examined at the hospital but did not suffer any major injuries.

“The students were very shocked,” he said, adding that the Red Cross had offered to provide counseling for any youth troubled by the incident.

The club has yet to decide whether to go ahead and participate in the weekend event, but the official said that given the young age of the children, it seemed likely that the youngest would be only 9 or It is 10 years. .

Yonhap news agency quoted other passengers as saying that after the door was opened, they experienced severe ear pain. It said the cabin crew shouted for help from the passengers to stop them from opening the door.

A total of 12 people were taken to hospitals for treatment or evaluation, according to the Ministry of Transport. Emergency officials in Daegu said the injured mainly suffered from shortness of breath and other minor symptoms.

Fortunately, the incident occurred close to landing, so the flight crew had already told all passengers to fasten their seat belts.