Asiana Airlines, 12 passengers who landed at Daegu Airport with emergency doors open were
transported to the hospital due to breathing difficulties.

By Reporter Lee Seung-gyu and Reporter Oh Jae-yong

At 11:58 am on the 26th, an Asiana flight departing from Jeju Airport and heading for Daegu opened an emergency door just before landing, causing 12 passengers to experience symptoms such as difficulty breathing.

According to Asiana Airlines, etc., the emergency door opened just before Asiana Airlines flight OZ8124 landed at Daegu Airport at around 12:45 pm on the same day. The plane is said to have landed on the runway with the door open. None of the 194 people on the plane were injured, but 12 passengers had trouble breathing, and nine of them were taken to the emergency room by ambulance immediately after landing.

Moon-mo (46), who boarded the plane, reported the urgent situation inside the plane, which turned into a mess at the time. “Two to three minutes after the landing announcement came out, I suddenly felt the air inside the aircraft being sucked out,” he said. I heard it,” he said. “After landing, I looked toward the emergency exit and saw a flight attendant and several passengers holding onto a man who was believed to have opened the exit,” he said. It is known that there was no in-flight broadcast related to the accident.

The Jeju Provincial Office of Education found that 38 Jeju elementary and secondary track and field athletes and 9 instructors participating in the National Youth Sports Festival held in Ulsan on the 27th were on board. It was also found that 17 judo players were on board. Nine of them were taken to the emergency room immediately after landing due to hand tremors. The Daegu Fire and Safety Headquarters set up a temporary medical center on the first floor of the airport and transported students complaining of abnormal symptoms such as difficulty breathing by ambulance to the hospital. An official from the Jeju Athletics Association, who led the students, said, “The children were not hurt, but they were very surprised.”

It was investigated that this emergency door was opened by male passenger A (33) sitting in an emergency exit seat at a point 250 meters above the plane right before landing at Daegu Airport. According to the police, it was determined that Mr. A was not in a drunken state at the time.

According to Asiana Airlines, the emergency exit seat where Mr. A is sitting is an important position to help other passengers escape by following the instructions of the flight attendant in an emergency situation such as a plane crash. Seating is restricted for those under the age of 15, the elderly, and pregnant women, and even if an emergency exit seat is purchased, whether or not the seat is available is constantly checked at the airport and on board. If emergency exit seats are unavailable, seat assignments may be canceled at will. Mr. A, who was sitting in the emergency exit seat, rather created an emergency situation. An Asiana Airlines official said, “At check-in, Mr. A did not show any abnormal symptoms, and it was judged that he was good enough to use the emergency exit seat.”

An official from the Daegu Police said, “We are currently investigating Mr. A for violating the Aviation Security Act, and Mr. A stated that he opened the door himself.” “We are investigating the exact circumstances of the crime.”

https://www.chosun.com/national/incident/2023/05/26/2NAITGZ64ZBFJCFDLFCAIXBMBI/