- The passenger tried opening the emergency exit door twice on the flight from Bengaluru to Varanasi
- He was warned after the first attempt
- The pilot aborted the landing and performed a go-around after the second attempt
Things turned spooky aboard an IndiGo flight on Saturday when a passenger tried to open the emergency exit door minutes before landing, later claiming he was "possessed by a ghost".
IndiGo flight 6E-185 from Bengaluru to Varanasi took off from Bengaluru around 8:15 pm, and among the passengers was a man named Mohammad Adnan, a resident of Mau district in Uttar Pradesh. Officials said just 15 minutes into the journey, Adnan attempted to tamper with the emergency door. The cabin crew detected the attempt, were told it was a mistake and warned the passenger not to repeat the action.
Adnan behaved normally for the rest of the flight until around 10.20 pm, just moments before the aircraft was about to touch down at Varanasi's Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport. With the plane 500 feet in the air, Adnan tried to open the emergency exit door once again. Officials said that upon being alerted by the crew, the pilot demonstrated quick thinking and aborted that landing attempt.
A go-around was conducted and the plane landed at 10.35 pm.
The officials said passengers were left shaken by Adnan's actions and thanked the crew for carrying out a safe landing.
In line with protocol, Adnan was immediately handed over to the airline's security personnel and the CISF (Central Industrial Security Force). The police were informed and a case was registered against him.
During questioning by security personnel and police officials at the airport, Adnan initially said he did not know why he had acted the way he had, and later claimed he was "possessed by a ghost". Interrogated at the police station, he said he was returning after vacationing in Goa and did not know that the handle he was pulling operated the emergency exit door.
"Our investigation is on and the accused is still being questioned. His family, which lives in Mau, has been informed and they are on their way to Varanasi," said a police official.
(With inputs from Piyush Acharya)
