Fellow passengers onboard an Aeromexico flight from Mexico City to Guatemala rushed to the defense of a seatmate who opened the overwing emergency exit and climbed onto the wing during a lengthy tarmac delay.
We’ve witnessed several of these kinds of incidents in the last few years, and they’re normally a surefire way to upset passengers who have to deal with the consequences of one person’s foolish antics, but in this case, the passengers actually praised the man who opened the exit door.
Aeromexico flight AM672 was due to depart Mexico City at around 8:45 am on Thursday, but there was a lengthy delay, and passengers say they were kept onboard the Boeing 737 without access to water or ventilation.
With no end in sight to the creeping ground delay, the man apparently opened the emergency exit in order to get some fresh air into the cabin.
Of course, the consequence of his actions was that the aircraft then had to be swapped out for a new airplane because engineers would need to reinstall the overwing exit, but that didn’t seem to bother many of his seatmates.
After he was taken into custody by local enforcement, dozens of other passengers on the delayed flight signed a handwritten statement explaining that he had opened the emergency exit to help all of the passengers onboard the delayed plane.
According to local media reports, at least 77 passengers onboard the plane signed the statement which stated: “The delay and lack of air created conditions that endangered the health of the passengers. He saved our lives.”
The man had opened the exit “to protect everyone, with the support of everyone,” the statement continued.
The flight had initially been delayed due to a maintenance issue, and then Aeromexico had to find a new aircraft to take the passengers to Guatemala City. In the end, they arrived at their destination just over four hours and 45 minutes late.
The airport authority confirmed that the man was taken into custody in accordance with “international security regulations”. It’s not clear whether Aeromexico will press charges against the man.
