Passenger Opens Emergency Exit: Jet Airways Passenger Jumps 15 Feet Onto Tarmac, Leaves Airport Unquestioned

A passenger opens an emergency exit door and leaps out of an airplane that had just landed in Mumbai in a bizarre story reported this weekend. According to Mail Online, a 30-year-old male decided to exit the plane on his own accord. Before the Jet Airways’ plane came to a stand still, Akash Jain got the door open and waited on the wing. Once the plane stopped moving, Mr. Akash jumped onto the tarmac. When he reached the ground (which was about 15-feet down), he asked someone for directions to the terminal. From there, he was on his way — and no one questioned him about his actions because the incident was reported too late.

“If the incident took place after the aircraft landed, why didn’t the airline security staff inform the security agencies immediately? Why did they need 35 minutes to do so?” said an airport spokesperson. It’s unknown if the airline will face any consequences.

The passenger that opened the emergency exit could have put the other passengers in danger. Reports indicate that there were 144 passengers and five crew members on board flight 9W469, which went from Chandigarh to Mumbai. There is currently an investigation underway.

According to One India, the incident happened around 3 p.m. on Friday, March 27. It took police over 24 hours to find Mr. Akash. They have been questioning him and are trying to figure out if he suffers from mental illness.

“We have arrested 27-year-old Jalandhar-based Akash Jain for endangering the life of other passengers and security of the aircraft,” said an official airport police member. Initial information suggest that Mr. Akash was trying to replicate the actions of famous Bollywood actor, Akshay Kumar.

“I wanted to perform a stunt like Akshay Kumar, because I am his fan, and hence I jumped off the aircraft. He told us that he had seen Akshay Kumar performing stunts in the movies and wanted to perform one himself. He added that the fact that passengers are repeatedly told to open the emergency doors only in case of an emergency made him want to open it more,” Mr. Akash was quoted as saying. It’s unknown if this was his sole purpose in completely the stunt.

The passenger that opened the emergency exit on the plane had quite a bit of money on him. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, investigators believe that he may have stolen money from his family.

[Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons]