Delhi-Ranchi flyer held for trying to open emergency door mid-air

A 32-year-old man caused a major incident on board a Delhi-Ranchi flight when he tried to open the emergency door of the aircraft mid-air, on Monday night. The man injured a few passengers and the airline crew when they tried to overpower him. He was arrested after the flight landed in Ranchi.

The incident took place around 9.50 pm when the Air Asia flight, from Delhi to Ranchi to Kolkata, was about to land at Ranchi airport. According to officers, the passenger, later identified as Aftab Ahmed, got up from his seat and walked towards the rear emergency door.

"According to the airline crew, the man tried to open the emergency exit door but was spotted by the crew members who intervened. When the crew member asked Ahmed to go back to his seat, he refused and started trying to unlock the emergency door. The crew member then called for assistance and the passenger was overpowered. This triggered a violent scuffle in which a few passengers and flight attendants were also injured," said a senior officer.

It was after the aircraft landed that the crew informed the CISF men deployed at Ranchi airport. They then apprehended the man and handed him over to local police for further action.

RECENT CASE

• In a similar incident, one person was injured on February 10 this year when a passenger opened the emergency chute of an IndiGo aircraft while taxiing at Mumbai airport.