Asiana Airlines mishandled mid-air door-opening, South Korean ministry rules

Asiana Airlines’ initial response to a recent mid-air door-opening incident was “inappropriate” and will be fined for it, the South Korean government’s investigation showed, Mr Park Sang-hyuk of the main opposition Korea Democratic Party said on Wednesday. According to a report Mr Park received from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the ministry has imposed a fine on Asiana Airlines and recommended country’s second-largest air carrier take corrective actions to prevent similar incidents in the future. Earlier in May, a passenger opened the emergency door of an Asiana Airlines plane right before landing at Daegu International Airport. None of the 194 passengers were hurt. The report said Asiana Airlines violated its own cabin crew manual, which states that passenger activities must be monitored for safe operations. According to the ministry’s investigation, the crew, who was three metres away from the door, was not aware of the suspect’s doing and took the incident as a door malfunction. The ministry, however, saw that the negligence was not intentional given that the incident took place in a very short period of time. The ministry pointed out that Asiana Airlines also failed to locate and apprehend the suspect. The report noted Asiana Airlines did not make any efforts to report the incident to its Daegu branch or to detain the suspect, creating a situation where the suspect could have escaped.<br/>