30s Who Opened Aircraft Door Before Landing Given Suspended Sentence... Recognized as Mentally Impaired

"Thought it had landed, opened it out of frustration" claim
Court: "Possible schizophrenia, psychiatric treatment needed"

A man in his 30s who opened the aircraft door of a plane landing at Daegu Airport, causing panic among passengers, was sentenced to a suspended prison term.

A man in his 30s, Mr. Lee, who boarded an Asiana Airlines flight from Jeju Airport to Daegu Airport, was urgently arrested by the police on charges of opening the exit door just before landing on May 26 (violation of the Aviation Security Act).
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 21st, Judge Jeong Jin-woo of the Criminal Division 5 at Daegu District Court sentenced A (32), who was charged with violating the Aviation Security Act, to three years in prison with a five-year suspension. The court also ordered probation and psychiatric treatment.

The passenger plane that landed on the runway at the time of the accident.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Earlier, A was prosecuted for opening the door of an Asiana Airlines plane carrying 197 passengers, which departed from Jeju and was heading to Daegu, at an altitude of 224 meters before landing at Daegu Airport around 12:37 PM on May 26. Additionally, the emergency evacuation slide detached during this incident, resulting in charges of aircraft damage.

Furthermore, 23 of the 197 passengers submitted medical certificates, adding charges of injury. Due to A’s disturbance, nine people, including elementary school students, experienced respiratory distress and were immediately taken to the hospital after landing.

During police investigation, A claimed, "I opened the door thinking the plane had fully landed on the runway. I opened it because I felt suffocated." However, the prosecution considered that the emergency door had a window allowing a view outside and that the emergency door should not be opened even while taxiing on the runway, and thus brought A to trial, demanding a six-year prison sentence.

During the trial, A admitted all charges but argued that he was in a state of diminished mental capacity at the time of the offense. In fact, the court’s psychiatric evaluation found that A was in a state of diminished mental capacity during the incident.

Judge Jeong stated, "The defendant opened the emergency door of an aircraft in operation, putting many passengers at risk and potentially leading to a major accident, which makes the crime very serious. However, since he admitted to the offense and the psychiatric evaluation suggests the possibility of schizophrenia, regular treatment for at least five years appears necessary," explaining the sentencing rationale.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.