PIA plane’s door opens during landing

Published February 24, 2020
Passengers on board a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight from Islamabad to Sukkur were shocked when plane’s door opened during landing on Sunday.  — Wikimedia Commons/File
Passengers on board a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight from Islamabad to Sukkur were shocked when plane’s door opened during landing on Sunday. — Wikimedia Commons/File

RAWALPINDI: Passengers on board a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight from Islamabad to Sukkur were shocked when plane’s door opened during landing on Sunday.

One of the female passengers on board the Sukkur flight told Dawn by telephone that the ATR’s flight was landing at the airport when its emergency door opened.

She said: “It all happened when the plane touched down the runway. As the door opened, all the passengers on board started screaming while some of them started making video with the cell phone as it looked that it was not a serious thing for them.”

She further said that nobody had touched the door or attempted to open it. “Thanks God, it didn’t happen in the mid-air,” she said.

Spokesman for PIA Abdullah Hafeez said inquiry into the incident has been initiated. He said the ATR planes door opens from inside the aircraft.

While commenting on today’s incident at Sukkur Airport, the spokesman said the plane’s door opened when a passenger touched its handle while getting up from his seat.

However, he didn’t reveal the name of the passenger.

The PIA flight PK-631 took off from Islamabad International Airport for Sukkur at 3pm on Sunday.

Published in Dawn, February 24th, 2020

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