A chaotic EasyJet flight from Turkey to London saw a 16-year-old attempt to open an emergency door mid-air, forcing an emergency landing in Italy and leaving passengers traumatised.
Panic ensued on a flight from Turkey to London after a 16-year-old girl’s unruly behaviour escalated into a full-blown mid-air crisis, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing.
Describing the ordeal as a “flight from hell”, travellers recounted moments of fear and chaos as the teenager attempted to open an emergency door thousands of feet above the ground.
The commotion began when the teenager, travelling with her mother and grandmother, reportedly reacted aggressively to a 10-year-old girl seated next to her who was coughing loudly.
According to Nadine, a 39-year-old passenger, tensions flared when the younger girl went to the restroom, only to be followed and confronted by the older girl. “The girl kept having outbursts, saying, ‘Get out of my face,’ and she wouldn’t let her out,” Nadine told The Sun.
When the younger girl’s mother intervened, the situation spiralled further out of control, prompting the flight crew to step in and separate the group. However, the teenager’s anger intensified.
“She started shouting abuse at the crew members and stormed to the back of the plane,” Nadine recalled, adding that the 16-year-old girl tried to open the emergency door and even broke the handle before the crew managed to restrain her.
The incident took another alarming turn when the teenager ran down the aisle, colliding with a passenger exiting the restroom. The impact sent both individuals crashing into the cockpit door, causing it to fly open.
Later, the teenager even hurled her shoes at passengers and issued threats, including one to stab a crew member.
Eventually, the flight crew managed to subdue the girl and return her to her seat. However, the pilots deemed it necessary to divert the flight for safety reasons.
The aircraft made an unscheduled landing in Italy’s Bari where the teenager was taken into custody by police and the rest of the passengers were forced to spend the night at a poor hotel.
“When we arrived, we were horrified. There was mould on the bathroom floor, the doors didn’t lock, and rubbish was piled up outside,” Nadine said.
EasyJet issued a statement emphasising that passengers were never in actual danger and defended their handling of the situation. “The safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew is always EasyJet’s priority,” the airline said. “While this was outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience this caused. We provided hotel accommodations and meals and have advised customers that we will reimburse any expenses incurred”.
Despite the airline’s assurances, passengers, including Nadine, expressed dissatisfaction with how the incident was managed. “EasyJet did not care about us on the plane,” she claimed, adding that no compensation had been offered.