Jetstar flight returns to Bali airport after passenger tried to open door in mid-air

Australia-bound Jetstar flight returns to Bali after passenger tried to open emergency door

A Jetstar flight from Bali was forced to turn back after a female passenger reportedly attempted to open the emergency door while the plane was mid-flight.

The incident occurred on flight JQ34 on Monday (31 March) night, with news.com.au reporting that the woman was removed from the aircraft.

Woman was reportedly unhappy with her seat

The flight took off from the Indonesian island at about 8.40pm local time with more than 200 passengers on board.

However, a ruckus erupted when a female passenger pulled at the door about two hours into the journey, with the plane 33,000 feet in the air.

In footage shared by Australian news outlet 7News, a passenger claimed that the woman was upset about her seat, which reportedly could not recline.

Another passenger quipped:

She’s not going to be sitting anywhere except a jail cell.

The video also showed a crowd gathering at the front of the aircraft as a man in a black singlet spoke sternly to the woman.

Jetstar passenger tried to open door as she ‘no longer wanted to be on the flight’

Australian reality TV star Brooke Jowett, who was on the flight with her husband and child, also shared her experience on Instagram, describing the incident as a “sh*tshow”.

The actions of the woman affected 260 passengers who were “forced to return back to Bali because of one stupid lady”, she said.

According to Ms Jowett, the woman had been arguing with the cabin crew about her seat before the situation escalated.

The woman decided she “no longer wanted to be on the flight” because her seat did not recline, she explained, adding:

So she decided to try to open the doors, which apparently triggered something to do with the emergency slide, and yeah, it was a big, bloody panic, it was very, very scary, but we’re fine.

Off-duty police officer pulled woman away

Thankfully, a man who was sitting near the toilets — the man in the black singlet — pulled her away from the door as she was trying to open it, Ms Jowett said, adding:

He was an off-duty police officer, apparently, so he saved the day. Thank God for that.

A passenger in the 7News clip can be heard saying they would “hate to be a cop on holiday and have to deal with this”.

Jetstar passenger removed, flight cancelled

The flight eventually returned to Bali, a Jetstar spokesperson confirmed to news.com.au.

It had to be diverted because a disruptive passenger attempted to open one of the aircraft doors. She was also abusive to the crew, the spokesperson added.

In another clip posted on Instagram by passenger Jacqueline Felgate, the captain can be heard apologising for going back, with passengers applauding to express their approval of the crew’s handling of the situation.

Once the plane landed, the woman was escorted away by local authorities.

The flight was cancelled and passengers were provided with a new flight, according to the news outlet.

In the statement, the airline also emphasised its prioritising of safety for both customers and crew, thanking them for how they responded to the situation and adding:

This sort of unacceptable behaviour will never be tolerated on our flights.

Similar incident took place on separate Jetstar flight on the same day

The latest incident took place around the same time as a physical altercation which reportedly took place between two men on a flight from Melbourne to Bali.

Footage shared online, also on 31 March, showed other passengers and cabin crew members intervening to separate them.

Jetstar said it is investigating the incident, praising its crew for how they managed the situation.

The airline has a “zero-tolerance policy” for disruptive and abusive behaviour on flights, it was also quoted as saying.

Also read: ‘Very uncomfortable & really scary’: Woman strips naked on plane in the US, delaying flight

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Featured image adapted from 7News on YouTube and @brookejowett on Instagram.