VietNamNet Bridge - A passenger on a Vietnam Airlines flight from HCM City to Thanh Hoa Province faces a VND20 million ($1,000) fine after opening the emergency door, which caused 23 other people to miss the flight.

The incident occurred when the flight landed at Thanh Hoa airport at 2.20 pm on July 22. When other passengers were leaving the aircraft through the main doors, passenger Pham Minh Ninh opened an emergency door to get out of the plane.

The next flight from Thanh Hoa to Ho Chi Minh City had to be delayed for nearly two hours due to the incident because technicians had to close the emergency door.

In addition, 23 passengers whose seats were near the emergency door could not board, although they had completed check-in procedures.

The airline explained that, because of safety reasons, they had to offload the passengers sitting near the emergency door that had just been closed.

Since the carrier did not have other flights from Thanh Hoa to HCM City on the same day, Vietnam Airlines had to carry the 23 passengers by bus to Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi, where they took a flight to HCM City.

This is not the first time a passenger has attempted to open an emergency door. Many people have been fined for this behavior.

According to Vietnam Airlines, for safety reasons, instructions on how to open the emergency door are posted on the door. Therefore, although it is not easy, several passengers can still open the door.

The incident caused a loss of thousands of US dollars for the carrier.

According to current regulations, passengers needlessly opening emergency doors can be fined up to VND20 million ($1,000). Most offenders have been fined VND15 million ($700).

Minh Son