Passengers faint as airplane door opens during flight

Police in South Korea have arrested a man who opened the door of an Asiana Airlines flight as the aircraft was landing.

The man reportedly opened the airplane’s emergency door about three minutes before the plane touched the ground, putting the flight’s 194 passengers at severe risk.

The plane landed safely at Daegu International Airport on Friday and all the passengers survived. Some passengers fainted while others had breathing problems and were taken to hospital, local media reported.

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The plane was about 250 meters above the ground when a male passenger, 33, sitting next to an emergency door pulled a lever so the door opened, according to an Asiana spokesperson said.

Flight attendants could not stop him because they were already seated for landing. Witnesses told local media the man also tried to jump out of the plane.

A video shared online show wind ripping through rows of terrified passengers. Nine people, including eight school children, were taken to hospital for suspected hyperventilation, officials said.

The passengers included 48 primary and middle school children who were on their way to a weekend sporting event. “The children were shaking, crying and frightened. Those sitting near the exit must have been shocked the most,” the mother of one of the pupils told the Yonhap news agency.

Another passenger said: “It was chaos with people close to the door appearing to faint one by one and flight attendants calling out for doctors on board through broadcasting,” according to Yonhap.

“I thought the plane was blowing up. I thought I was going to die like this,” he added.

An official said the man had refused to answer investigators’ questions.

“It is difficult to have a normal conversation with him,” Yonhap quoted the official as saying. “We will investigate the motive of the crime and punish him.”