The passenger who opened the emergency door during the flight felt as if he was suffocating outside

The South Korean man who became global news Friday for opening the door during a scheduled flight explained why he did it. He faces ten years in prison for violating the aviation law.

In a police questioning, the 33-year-old suspect whose last name is Lee indicated that he was having difficulty breathing. He wanted to get out as quickly as possible, thus opening the plane door before the plane landed.

Twelve passengers suffered minor injuries. The scheduled domestic Asiana Airlines flight was landing in Daegu. There were two hundred people on board. Victims say the air was blown violently when the emergency door was opened. The panic was great. Some say they experienced severe pain in their ears. A video of the incident went viral.

Pressure

Because of the air pressure, it should not be possible to open the door during the flight. Asiana Airlines thinks it has succeeded here because the landing has already begun. According to the Ministry of Transport, the plane was flying at an altitude of 213 meters when the man pulled the handle. The suspect was officially arrested on Sunday. He is suspected of violating the aviation law. It states that passengers are not allowed to touch the aircraft door, emergency door and other equipment.

See what fellow passengers filmed here. The text continues below the video.

Daegu police said they may allow 20 days for the investigation before Lee is charged. If convicted, he could face up to ten years in prison.

a lot of pressure

According to the police, the suspect has now provided an explanation for his strange act. He was going to be under a lot of pressure because he was recently fired. He later told the officers, “I wanted to get out as quickly as possible.” Lee felt like he was choking, so he pulled the emergency door handle. His seat was there.

As a precaution, Asiana Airlines will leave the lines next to the emergency exit empty for the time being. So there are few seats available for each flight.

Joris Melkert, assistant professor of aerospace engineering at TU Delft, explains how this could happen.

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